James Potter and his second year
by Marie4
Summary: In his second year at Hogwarts join James while he learns about his quidditch skills, deals with becoming Animagi and begins to realise that Lily is more special than he thought. COMPLETE This is a sequel. Click on my name for 1st year.
1. Default Chapter

Authors Note

I'm sorry, I forgot to write a disclaimer in the main part of the story so I'll do it now.

I do not claim any ownership of Harry Potter or its related characters. Those are the sole property of JK Rowling and those organisation to whom she has sold rights.

Now a quick thank you to those of you who have flipped over from my story James Potter and his new friends. Enjoy the sequel.

If you didn't read my last fic I'd strongly suggest you do as this it a sequel. J If you reviewed my last story then look down, if you didn't, shame on you.

_Sarah_; Thanks for reading so consistently. I'm sorry I didn't get back to you with the name of the sequel, but I didn't know it. I hope you found it anyway.

_Smiley-freak :D_; A thanks is due to you for always being there when I checked my revies.

_Kat_; I'm sorry I couldn't lengthen my chapters as it was already written and the length of the chapters is set.

_Sweet Strawberri_; I hope you got around to reading it eventually J

_Diabla666_; I was quite keen on the Davey Gudgeon thing, thanks for noticing.

_Inulover_; I wanted to explain how he came to tag along. There are other ways, but I think a friendship between parents is a good way to explain why people are friends. I'm not sure why you don't think it's true (not that I'm saying I do mind) Do you know something I don't?

_Aerin_; In this fic James has parents too and they aren't there for Harry. Who says his little sister survives? I didn't put italics or anything in in the first place because I wanted it to read like a book, and it's already written so it's be too much of a hassle to go back and change things now. I hope no one's having trouble understanding me though.

_Lelegurl9_; Thanks for saying nice things.

_Tonks85_; Here's the sequel. Glad you liked my story.  

_Laura_; Well spotted with Mechante. There are more like that.

_Ravenclaw_; I didn't hear from you again after you became my first reviewer. I hope you came back and read. 

Right then, on with the story.


	2. Birthday Presents

Chapter 1 - Birthday Presents.  
  
James Potter woke up on the morning of his twelfth birthday feeling very excited. Today he was going to meet his friends in Diagon Alley and he was going to get a new broomstick. His parents had been so proud that he'd been picked for the house team that they'd agreed to buy him a new model 'Silver Arrow' for his birthday. His old 'comet 100' just wasn't fast enough for the Gryffindor house Quidditch team, especially for a chaser.  
  
He got out of bed and dressed hurriedly in Jeans and a T-shirt. He took the stairs three at a time (only just resisting the urge to slide down the banisters; his mother would have killed him, birthday or no birthday). He didn't even bother to try and tame his messy black hair. He'd been asked countless time whether he knew the meaning of the word 'hairbrush' but he simply couldn't make it lie flat. People just didn't believe him when he told them it just grew like that.  
  
He found his parents and Cara (his little sister) having breakfast. His mother's round frame was bustling about making a fried breakfast and fussing about the state of the toast. She turned to greet him as he came in; the dark eyes James had inherited were sparkling merrily. Cara gave him a wide smile as he approached. She was nine, with long black hair like James' (but more than a little tidier) and they had the same dark, almost black eyes. Her eyes held the same sparkle as his mother's and although they were quite close in age there had been very little sibling rivalry. On the contrary, they were very close, and James loved her more than just about anything. He blushed and squirmed as his mum and Cara kissed him and wished him a happy birthday (although he was secretly quite pleased) and he beamed as he sat down and ate a proper breakfast. A fry up was a real treat; it was saved for special occasions in the Potter house.  
  
He got very few presents that morning (some sweets from his grandparents and an affectionate nip on the ear from his owl Selene among other things) as he'd be meeting his friends in Diagon Alley later that day and his dad was going to buy him his new broomstick. His dad had even taken a day off work to join them on their shopping expedition. Jonathon Potter was an Auror (a dark wizard catcher) for the Ministry of Magic. With his messy black hair, tall, thin frame and mischievous smile, he didn't look the type that evil dark wizards would be afraid of, but looks can be deceiving. Jonathon Potter was actually a very powerful wizard. Fortunately, at that time, Aurors didn't really have much to do. Most of the Dark Wizard Grindelwald's few remaining supporters had been stamped out and James' dad could afford to take a bit of time off.  
  
James waited impatiently for his mother to finish styling her curly hair, pacing the front room, fiddling with the pot of floo powder. Finally, she and Cara joined them in front of the fireplace. James had never really enjoyed travelling by floo powder. He had broken his glasses countless times and he always felt dizzy and disorientated for ages afterwards, but it was the best way until he learned to Apparate. This time he took off his round, black wire framed glasses and tucked them safely into his pocket before taking a pinch of floo powder and throwing it into the fireplace.  
  
"Diagon Alley." He said clearly into the fireplace (if you weren't clear you never knew where you'd end up) before stepping in. He briefly felt a familiar warm tickling sensation before he started spinning out of control through the dark Floo network. He strained his eyes as he slowed down, passing several different fireplaces until he finally saw the familiar toothless grin of Tom the innkeeper and The Leaky Cauldron, the dim pub and entrance to Diagon Alley. He sat at a nearby table and waited for everyone else to appear, cleaning his glasses, because even in his pocket they had got very sooty, fortunately his hanky had stayed clean. Cara appeared first, giggling happily. She loved travelling by floo powder and she always enjoyed trips to Diagon Alley.  
  
His mum was the next out and she immediately pulled out her huge brush and started brushing away the soot, complaining all the time about the state of James' hair. Fortunately, before James could protest, his dad popped out of the fire looking even sootier, with his hair even messier and his glasses smashed.  
  
"Stop fussing Metria, the kids are just fine, oculus reparo," he muttered the last words under his breath while tapping his glasses with his wand, they fixed instantly. Of course, his mother didn't stop fussing, but she did transfer it to her husband. "Look at the state of you, honestly, would it kill you to comb your hair? What did you do on the way here? How did you get so dirty?" "Metria, stop fussing! Come on, we've got shopping to do." He glanced over at James who was staring at his watch pointedly and tapping his foot. Cara was laughing at him, she always found James' impatience amusing. James glared at her and she stopped laughing temporarily, until she realised he was joking and started again, even harder than before. James joined in; her giggles were contagious. She was still giggling uncontrollably as her dad tapped the third brick to the right above the bin outside the Leaky Cauldron, but she stopped abruptly and gasped as she watched the wall dissolve into the archway entrance to Diagon Alley. James privately agreed with her. No matter how many times he'd visited Diagon Alley in the past, the magical entrance to this amazing place never failed to take his breath away.  
  
They stepped through the archway and James headed straight for 'Quality Quidditch Supplies' as he always did, as it was his favourite shop. His mother called him back as she always did, as they needed to go to Gringotts (the wizarding bank) first. In order to get to their gold, they would have to travel through a maze of caves deep beneath the streets of London. James hated this ride. A goblin put them into two carts and they set off at high speed, rattling along an invisible track, pulled by an unseen force. First this way then that way, circling, zigzagging, turning innumerable corners, James' head spun. Cara's hair was whipped into his face, but they were moving too fast for him to brush it away. She was laughing madly, a little speed demon, she would be a great Quidditch player, she loved visiting Gringotts, but it always made James feel slightly queasy, though he never told anyone. He always wondered why they didn't notice, he always went a little green around the gills; it must have been really obvious. He supposed they were just being delicate.  
  
So, with their moneybags jingling, they left Gringotts for the cobbled street outside. They had a lot of shopping to do.  
  
James had a lot to buy for school (though not as much as last year. He went to Flourish and Blotts to buy his new schoolbooks and some ink and parchment. He bought some new potions ingredients too, as he was running a bit low. He was just about to ask his dad if they could go and buy his broomstick yet when he spotted his friends sitting outside old Mr Fortescue's ice cream parlour. They all waved to him as he approached, dragging a reluctant little sister along with him (she'd gone shy). He introduced his parents to Remus Lupin and Sirius Black (they already knew Peter Pettigrew). He also introduced Cara, who'd gone uncharacteristically quiet. She blushed when Sirius smiled at her. He sat down with them, and his parents took their leave. Cara stayed however, and sat at the end of the table, very quietly.  
  
Soon they were all sat with ice cream sundaes, enjoying the sunny weather, chatting happily about their summer holidays and thinking of new ways to cause trouble when they got back to school in a fortnight. They were having so much fun that James even forgot about his new Silver Arrow for a while. His friends had all brought him presents; a set of biting teacups from Sirius, a new chess set from Remus and a box of assorted sweets from Peter. He grinned broadly as Cara shyly handed over her present,  
  
"I was going to wait until you got your new broom, but I thought maybe you'd like it now." She said, in an almost inaudible whisper as he unwrapped a pair of shiny new tail twig clippers. James' smile became even broader (if that was possible) and he grabbed her and gave her a huge hug. His friends laughed, as Cara turned an interesting shade of shocking pink. She saw the funny side however and laughed along with the rest of them. A few minutes later, reminded by Cara of his new broomstick, he dragged all of them into Quality Quidditch Supplies to meet his parents. He came out twenty minutes later, feeling elated, carrying his new Silver Arrow.  
  
"Keep Cara busy." He whispered to Sirius. He chose Sirius because Cara seemed to like him. She allowed him to steer her back to the ice cream parlour while James snuck off to Eeylops owl emporium. He wanted to buy Cara an owl. He picked a small, fluffy one. It wasn't very expensive, and James knew Cara would think it was cute. It was really, it looked a little like a feathery tennis ball, and it was very affectionate. He hooted rather cheerfully as James paid for it.  
  
He found his friends and Cara back at Fortescue's ice cream parlour, chatting to Mr Fortescue's son, Florean. He was about eighteen, and very clever, especially in the area of the history of magic. James made a mental note to get some help from him when he had problems with his homework in the future. He set the cage with the little owl down in front of Cara grinning, "This is your birthday present." Cara looked astounded, "But it's not my birthday until next month." "Yeah, but I'll be away, and I thought you'd like this early, now you can send me as many letters as you like!" She was speechless, and this time it was her turn to give him a huge hug and his turn to go red. 


	3. Return to Hogwarts

Chapter 2 - Return to Hogwarts  
  
James woke up on the morning of the first of September feeling very excited. Today he'd be going back to school. He jumped out of bed and dressed quickly; hastily throwing the last of the things he needed into his trunk and ran down the stairs for breakfast. Cara was sat there with his parents, eating her scrambled eggs. She looked about the opposite of how he was feeling. She really would miss him. He realised suddenly that he would miss her too. He had got used to hearing her voice again, and seeing her everyday. He wasn't sure he'd be able to cope without her.  
  
He went and sat next to her and ruffled her hair. She squealed and then laughed. He always did that to her hair, and she always shrieked. A good natured, high-pitched tirade about the state of her hair and how long it had taken to brush. It was a little known fact that she had as much trouble with her hair as James, but she tried harder to control it! James could only guess at what time she got up to start brushing her hair, and how much hair potion she got through a week to get her hair looking good. It wasn't a waste though; she was very pretty. She was going to break hearts when she got older, James was certain of it. He smiled at her and told her not to be sad; he'd be back before she knew it. She smiled back gratefully; her dark eyes gleaming with unshed tears. He nearly cried too at the sight of her looking so miserable, but he resisted the urge and ran upstairs to make sure he had everything.  
  
His dad drove them to Kings Cross. James was glad; he really wasn't in the mood to face floo powder again. He approached the barrier between platforms 9 and 10, deciding to just walk through. Unfortunately he stumbled as he approached and fell right through and onto platform 9 ¾, right at the feet of Sirius, who burst out laughing. James felt a flush creep up his face and burn. How embarrassing. He took the hand Sirius offered to help him back up and playfully punched him on the arm, and then he saw the person he'd been trying to forget all summer. Lily Evans. The previous year he'd had reason to suspect she knew all about his plots and secrets. He didn't know how, or why, but it unnerved him. He looked quickly away; she was looking at him sympathetically, he didn't want to meet her gaze. He looked at his sister instead.  
  
She was crying. He hated saying goodbye to her. He smiled at her and tousled her hair playfully, making her smile weakly through the tears and kissed her forehead. She smacked him round the head playfully and kissed his cheek softly. He got onto the train and hurried to find his friends. He found them all sitting in a compartment together. He felt the train move beneath him, and he saw the landscape outside slowly change. He waved to Cara, who seemed to be torn between laughter and tears, and his parents, who were smiling at him. He could see his mother calling to him not to get in trouble; he didn't need to hear her to know that. He also saw his father's mischievous grin and sparkling eyes telling him not to listen to his mum and to have as much fun as he could. He decided to take his fathers unspoken advice. It seemed much more fun.  
  
Back in the compartment, an argument had begun about that years Quidditch world cup. England had done terribly, again. Sirius insisted it was because the beaters were terrible, but Remus was more inclined to believe the seeker was crap. James privately agreed with Remus, but thought it best to keep out of this one. 'In fact,' he reasoned to himself, 'I'd probably better try interrupting the argument.'  
  
"Sirius." He began. He had to repeat this a few times to get his attention, getting gradually louder each time. He tried again, "Sirius, didn't you have an idea for a way we can help Remus? Did anything come of it?" James was referring to the discovery he and Sirius and Peter had made last year, that Remus was a werewolf. They had decided they wanted to make the experience more comfortable for him, but they had no idea how to go about it. At the end of last term Sirius had said he'd had an idea, but he'd refused to say more until he'd done some research or something. James couldn't believe he'd forgotten about it until now.  
  
All eyes turned expectantly towards Sirius, who puffed out his chest importantly, obviously enjoying being the centre of attention. He'd probably been dying to tell them all about it for ages, but he hadn't really had a chance. "Well, my dear friends, I have searched high and low, faced adversity and danger, racked my brains and thought, yes James, don't look like that, thought of a possible solution to Remus' problem." James snorted with laughter and rolled his eyes, the thought of Sirius thinking was very funny. He didn't think Sirius had ever thought about anything, that was his biggest problem. "We," he paused for dramatic effect, enjoying the way they were clinging to his every word, "are going to become," he paused again. They waited obediently; James rolled his eyes again, "Animagi." He finished, finally. He watched, smugly as the word had its desired effects. Peter let out a frightened squeak, and Remus' jaw dropped. James understood their reactions. The animagus transformation (turning at will into an animal) was notoriously difficult and very dangerous. Sirius was obviously nuttier than a fruitcake. James couldn't see what on earth he was thinking about, they couldn't possibly pull off the Animagus transformation; they were only twelve for Pete's sake, and how would them being animals help them anyway? Sirius seemed to understand James' misgivings, however, and he proceeded to address them in the same pompous tone,  
  
"I see my dear James, you are not yet convinced. I must offer you some reasons. First, a werewolf is only dangerous to humans, animals would be quite safe, and we could keep Remus company. Secondly, I know it will be difficult, but we have James and Remus to help us, how can we fail?" James thought about it for a while. Maybe it was possible after all. It was going to be hard, no doubt about it, but they could do it, if they tried. Anyway, no one else had come up with a better idea, so it was their only hope. They spent the rest of the journey trying to figure out ways of getting to the restricted section in the library. That was going to be difficult. He knew it would somehow involve his invisibility cloak, but James was at a loss for ideas. They were still thinking as the train slowed and approached Hogsmeade station, but after that they had no more time to think. They piled out of the train and into one of those little carriage things that seemed to pull themselves. It was very uncomfortable, and only the sight of the great gates topped with winged boars could stop Peter's complaining. They were back at Hogwarts! 


	4. Lily's Revenge

Chapter 3 - Lily's revenge  
  
James and the other 'Marauders' entered the Great Hall feeling very cheerful indeed. James knew there was going to be a lot of trouble this year, and he knew that whatever it was, they were sure to be behind it. This thought made James very happy. He glanced at the others who all seemed to have had the very same thought, but they were reacting to it in very different ways. Sirius' face had split into a grin that was very similar to James', Remus looked resigned but amused at the same time, but Peter looked downright terrified, probably at the thought of all the detentions he'd end up in.  
  
They all sat at the Gryffindor table at the far side of the hall, next to the Gryffindor ghost, Sir Nicholas de Mimsy Porpington (or Nearly Headless Nick). The sorting seemed to take no time at all compared to last year. James decided this was probably because he wasn't almost sick with nerves this year, and he was impatient for the food to appear.  
  
He looked on lazily as the new first years were sorted into their houses. He wasn't really paying attention, but a rather dozy looking boy with dark hair and blue eyes caught his eye. He was looking a bit dazed. He turned out to 'Diggle, Dedalus'. It took a while for him to be sorted, the hat seemed to be having difficulties knowing where to put him and it was thinking very hard. Finally it decided on Hufflepuff. Dedalus seemed pleased to have been put anywhere, and he almost skipped over to the Hufflepuff table, grinning widely at the cheers that greeted him.  
  
James diverted his attention away from the sorting and started to listen to Sirius whispering to Remus about a trick he'd played on a muggle waiter in Greece on holiday. It seemed that itching powder didn't just work on wizards. Apparently, this poor man had jumped all over the restaurant, scratching his backside and swearing loudly in Greek. Sirius said he'd never seen a restaurant empty so fast.  
  
At the end of the sorting (Weasley, Bilius), Professor Dumbledore stood up and cleared his throat. James hoped he wouldn't take too long, he was feeling very hungry all of a sudden. "I do not wish to keep you from this excellent feast a minute longer than necessary. I have one or two announcements to make to the new students. Firstly, the Forbidden Forest is just as the name suggests, forbidden. Magic should not be used in the corridors between lessons, students who wish to try out for their house Quidditch team should keep an eye on the notice board and pupils should remain in bed at night." James was positive that the merry light in Dumbledore's eye was directed at him and 'The Marauders', "So, without further ado, let us eat." "Hear hear." Called Sirius, he was always hungry, as the food magically appeared on the golden plates in front of them.  
  
James felt very content as he ate and talked. He listened to the story of Nearly Headless Nick's messed up beheading. Someone had done a very clumsy job of killing him; they'd hacked away, but hadn't bothered to finish the job. The axe had obviously been too blunt. The first years watched open mouthed as he swung his head onto his shoulder by his ear, as though on a hinge. A couple of inches of skin and sinew were all that kept his head on his shoulders. He looked very pleased at the shocked expressions on the faces of the first years, and he put his head back on his neck and straightened the overlarge ruff he wore to keep it from wobbling with a rather smug smile. He patted James on the shoulder but James heartily wished he hadn't. The feeling was not unlike suddenly stepping into a cold shower.  
  
At the end of the feast, feeling full and content, James went to find a prefect. He collared Mundungus Fletcher, a fifth year and newly appointed prefect. James had to wonder what Dumbledore was thinking about, Mundungus was definitely (as the muggles say) a few sandwiches short of a picnic, and he smelled funny, but Dumbledore was the genius, and he was more than eccentric himself. Mundungus told him the password (gobbledegook) and he set off towards Gryffindor Tower. He was exhausted, looking forward to his warm soft four-poster bed. They could leave adventures until the next night.  
  
Ahead of them, James saw that a crowd was forming. He pushed forward to get a better look. At the centre of the confusion was Severus Snape, Slytherin, bully and all round slimy git. He was grinning wickedly at Lily Evans. James resisted the urge to jump in; he knew Lily was more than capable of dealing with Snape. Only last year she'd slapped him when he called her a Mudblood. He'd obviously done something of that sort again. James waited with bated breath to see what she'd do to him this time.  
  
Lily glared back, obviously angry, but calm at the same time. James thought she looked very dangerous, especially the fact that her brilliant, emerald green eyes were flashing venomously. He made a mental note to watch out for that in the future. He didn't ever want to be on the receiving end of her anger. She held his gaze, and James thought he saw Snape almost falter under her angry eyes. Everyone waited for her to do something, but to everyone's surprise, she turned and walked away, head held high. James watched her intently, and because everyone else's attention was focused on Snape, they didn't see what he saw. He saw her mutter something under her breath and point her wand over her shoulder. Snape was laughing smugly, obviously satisfied that he'd achieved what he wanted. But the laughing didn't stop, he was doubled over with hysterical laughter, then he fell over, still cackling. James supposed she'd used the tickling charm. It had an excellent effect; Snape's laugh was very funny. More like a cackle, and seemed to be hurting him to chortle like that. It wasn't like it was a sound he was accustomed to making.  
  
The crowd around him had also fell about laughing, whether it was because Snape's laugh was so funny, or because laughter is contagious, no one knew. They were still laughing as Dumbledore approached, eyes twinkling to see what all the fuss was about. His moustache twitched as he listened to Snape telling him how Lily Evans had put the tickling charm on him (after Dumbledore had reversed it of course). Dumbledore seemed to realise without being told that Snape deserved what he got, so he gave no punishments and sent Snape back to the Slytherin common room. His face had lost its grin now, instead he looked angry. He seemed to be fuming in fact. The Gryffindors were ushered to their common room, still laughing at the thought of Snape doing something as out of character as laughing. The rest of the school seemed highly amused too, even some of the Slytherins were fighting to conceal amused smiles.  
  
James and his friends climbed the seemingly hundreds of steps to their dormitory. They were even more exhausted because of the laughing; it can really tire a person out, hysterical laughter. Lily had been nowhere to be seen in the common room, 'she must have gone to bed early' James thought. It was a shame though; everyone really wanted to congratulate her on making a fool of the most hated person in the year. As he closed his eyes, the last thing he saw was Lily's face as she muttered the charm under her breath. Her eyes had twinkled mischievously, although her face had retained a look of haughty indifference. 'It was brilliant." James thought to himself as he drifted off into a deep sleep. 


	5. The First Practise

Chapter 4 - The First Practise  
  
The first lesson of the second year was absolutely hysterical. This year the Gryffindors had Charms with the Slytherins, and they were not happy about this in the slightest. Snape was especially annoyed. Lily had already embarrassed him twice in front of practically the whole school, and she was excellent in Charms. James was sure that Snape would not be impressed that this 'Mudblood' could do every charm better than him. In potions he had been happy, the teacher favoured him, he was the best in the class and he was free to make the Gryffindor's lives hell. Professor Flitwick, the tiny little charms teacher was a lovely little man, fair and clever with a sense of humour (and as rumour has it, an excellent dueller). He was, however, seemingly oblivious to a lot of the things that went on in his class, as well as being young and a lover of mischief. This made his class the best opportunity for getting some revenge on Snape.  
  
James started as he meant to go on. He was really angry at Snape for doing whatever it was that had made Lily angry (it must have been bad, she was normally such a nice girl) so he decided to do something simple, but effective. He remembered a rather interesting charm his dad had taught him over the holidays, the hiccough charm. Since it was Charms class, he decided this would be quite ironic, and since charms was his worst subject (well except for maybe potions) no one would suspect him, would they? He took out his wand and pointed it under the table, muttering a few well- chosen words. He watched out of the corner of his eye, and for a while nothing happened. James began to get worried that it hadn't worked and was just about to try again when Snape hiccoughed loudly. The class turned to look at him. Sirius, Remus and Peter all looked accusingly at James who tried his best to look innocent. His dark eyes flashed with mischief though, as he looked at Snape too, trying to force his features into an innocently curious expression.  
  
The result was better than he could have hoped for. Professor Flitwick gave him a glass of water and Sirius 'helpfully' offered to hold him upside down so he could drink it. Remus equally 'helpfully' snuck up behind Snape with a balloon and a pin and popped it in his ear, making Snape let out an especially large hiccough in shock. The class laughed hysterically at Sirius and Remus' antics, Snape had gone red, whether from embarrassment, anger or a lack of oxygen James couldn't be sure. It was probably something like a mixture of the three. Flitwick sent him off to the hospital wing, a look of concern evident on his tiny face. Only last year he'd had to send him to the young Madame Pomfrey because he couldn't stop jumping up and down, scratching himself. Even better than this was that Flitwick dismissed the class twenty minutes early because he was so flustered, and he wanted to go and speak to Professor Mechante as he was very worried.  
  
"That was excellent J." Sirius looked at him admiringly, James tried not to look too pleased with himself, "Where did you learn that charm? Would you teach me it?" Trust Remus to want to know. He wanted to know everything. "My dad taught me it during the summer." Sirius now looked jealous. "My dad wouldn't dream of doing anything like that. Your dad is so cool. Dad won't teach me anything fun, only thing that he says is, erm, useful and..." His voice trailed off and James and Remus looked at him curiously. James didn't know that much about Sirius' parents, just that they were an old wizarding family.  
  
James settled back into castle life very quickly. In the first month, Snape got green hair, burped slugs (revenge for Sirius' body bind) and got the blame for an explosion of shrinking solution in potions. He spent a night in the Forbidden Forest in a detention with Hagrid and Fang, and he returned looking very shaken. All of these little tricks had the result of putting James in an extremely good mood; it was great to see Snape finally getting what he deserved. Snape, however was looking even more murderous.  
  
Soon, though, something happened to put James in an even better mood, and even distract him from his campaign against Snape. The Quidditch season had begun, and he was looking forward to his first practise with plenty of excitement, but also trepidation. He was secretly worried that he wouldn't fit in with the older pupils, or that he wouldn't be good enough. He didn't discuss this fear with anyone though. He thought it was a bit unfounded, and there was no sense in being scared of a situation he wasn't sure he would find himself in. He was also scared of losing face in front of his friends.  
  
He needn't have worried at all, though. The other members of the team were very pleasant, and Harold Lider; the rather tall, and wide chaser and team captain was especially nice, and a very good captain. It turned out that the existing team always met before tryouts to discuss possible new members. This year the team would need a new chaser, beater and seeker. The new seeker seemed to be causing Lider a lot of problems; he looked quite desperate as he pleaded with the team for suggestions. James racked his brains to think of anyone he knew that might make a good seeker. His mind fell on Lily. He remembered the last Quidditch match of the season last year. He watched in his mind as Lily stretched out her hand and pointed to the tiny golden snitch, even though James could barely see it, even with his binoculars. She had incredible eyesight and a knack for spotting things other people didn't. He cleared his throat, he felt a little shy speaking up in front of the team, and after all he'd only been on the team for about ten minutes.  
  
"Well, there's this girl in my year, I don't know how well she flies, but she could spot the snitch with her naked eye when I had difficulty with binoculars. I was, er, watching her during the match against Ravenclaw." Fortunately Lider seemed too preoccupied to notice the embarrassed flush sneaking up James throat and face. For some reason, he hadn't liked admitting he'd been watching her. Lider seemed fascinated by the possibility, however and started bombarding James with questions. James didn't know anything about Lily except that she had good eyesight and a horrible sister, was good and charms and was muggle born. This didn't seem to pacify Harold much, as he wanted to know what kind of broom she flew and whether she'd played Quidditch before. James told him several times that he didn't know, but Harold didn't seem to believe him. Obviously the idea that someone's life didn't revolve around Quidditch was new to him. In the end, James agreed to convince her to try out for the team so Harold could see her for himself.  
  
It took a while for the conversation about prospective players to taper away. James was pleased to hear that Sirius was being seriously considered for the beaters position. He knew it was important to him. Finally though, they got into the air. James felt incredibly happy to be up there, he felt like he belonged, like this was what he was meant to do. His new broomstick was excellent; it steered easily and accelerated well. He was happy when he had the Quaffle in his hands, and it seemed the most natural thing in the world to throw it through the centre of the hoops. Lider was very satisfied with his team so far, and was wearing a huge grin. James was so happy that he didn't notice the pair of sparkling green eyes watching him from the back of the stands. 


	6. Quidditch Tryouts

Chapter 5 - Quidditch Tryouts  
  
Why had James said he'd talk to Lily? He mentally kicked himself the next day. He hardly knew the girl; she was no more than an acquaintance, why on earth did he volunteer for this? He'd stayed awake all night trying to think of ways he could bring up the subject of Quidditch tryouts. 'Hi, Harold Lider asked me,' no, that made him sound like a messenger, how about 'Have you ever played Quidditch?' No, that was too abrupt. 'Are you a good flyer?' Now he was being stupid; that was just rude. The Quidditch tryouts were in a few days, so James needed to broach the subject with her soon, so she'd have time to get used to the idea. He decided to do it that night, in the common room. The decision to take some action made him feel a little better for some reason, but, as it so often does, time seemed to be trying to be awkward and moved as fast as it could. Before he knew it, it was seven o'clock, and he hadn't done a thing about it. If he didn't do anything soon it would be too late. Sirius was smirking at him as he sat in the common room watching her do her homework. Even Remus was fighting to hide an amused smile. They didn't know what James did, though. They didn't know why she made him this nervous. They didn't have a clue about his suspicions about her. They thought he was just being chicken, and afraid to talk to a pretty girl 'where did that thought come from', he thought to himself, 'come on, let's get this over with.'  
  
She was alone. This was probably the best and only chance he would get that night. He mustered up as much courage as he could and walked purposefully over to Lily, ignoring his friends' snickering and her friends giggling. She was working hard on an essay, and didn't look up until he was right next to her.  
  
"So, are you, er, trying out?" He asked her, trying to sound casual, pointing to the notice about Quidditch tryouts. He was surprised when she gave a snort of laughter. "Have you ever seen me fly?" She asked, that threw him, "No, I don't think so." He was surprised by this reply. When he thought about it, they had flying lessons together, why hadn't he ever seen her fly? "I spend a lot more time on the ground than you do, I'm really bad at flying." She stated this matter of factly. James wondered briefly how she knew he was going to ask that question, it was almost as though she had read his mind. He shook the thought away; that was an obvious question, she had just pre-empted him. "You can't be that bad." James really didn't think she could be as bad as she was making herself out to be. "I am." She said flatly, she didn't seem bothered by it. "Look, Lily, I saw you at that match against Ravenclaw last year. I couldn't believe how quickly you spotted the snitch. You'd be an excellent seeker." For a second, an almost hopeful look flitted across her face, but it was gone just as quickly. James understood, "Just try out, we can work on your flying skills later. I've never seen such a natural talent." She smiled at him gratefully for a moment, and then told him she'd think about it. He grinned back and left to join Sirius, who was still smirking, Remus, who had given up trying to hide his amusement and was smiling broadly and Peter, who seemed to not understand what was going on. He looked a bit bewildered. It didn't help that it had been Sirius who had tried to explain the situation to him, and Remus was now trying to fix his mess. He was the only one with the patience to deal with Peter.  
  
James hoped Lily had been convinced to try out. He knew if someone had said those things to him, he'd have been flattered enough to turn up. He supposed he'd find out for certain on Saturday afternoon.  
  
On Saturday morning, James amused himself watching Sirius, who was trying to pretend he wasn't nervous by telling very bad jokes very loudly. James wasn't fooled, however. He knew Sirius well enough now to know that this meant his knees were trembling and his stomach was squirming and the fact that he didn't eat anything was a dead give away. He pointed this out to Sirius, who dropped the act and looked at him earnestly. "It's alright for you, you're already on the team. I can't help being nervous, I want the place." James thought for a moment whether to tell him what he'd heard at practise about him. He decided against it; he didn't want to get his hopes up. Instead he settled for giving him a reassuring grin and telling him he'd be fine.  
  
The tryouts weren't much different to last year, with only one difference for James, he wasn't nervous. He stood with the other team members as he listened to Lider telling all the new recruits what they'd have to do and what being a member of the team would entail. James noticed with some satisfaction that Lily had turned up. She looked really nervous, and James felt an overwhelming urge to go and comfort her. Instead, he looked at her and gave her a little smile, which she returned.  
  
Soon, they had started a mock game. James had been sent up too, to keep an eye on the new players, and to make up the numbers. Harold was watching from the ground. The people who were trying out were very good. Harold was going to have problems choosing between them. He was pleased to see that Sirius was excelling himself, fortunately he was on the same team as him, he didn't fancy being hit in the face with a bludger he'd sent his way. Lily, on the other hand, didn't seem to be doing so well. She was always the first to see the snitch, but as soon as she set off after it, Aiolos, the other person trying out for seeker would see, chase her and get there first. She was right, she wasn't a very good flyer, but perhaps that could be fixed. At that moment Harold whistled to signal the end of the game and sent everyone away. He got the team together, and they sat in the locker rooms for a while, discussing what they had just seen.  
  
"I vote for Black for beater." James was glad he hadn't suggested it, and he was also very pleased that everyone else seemed to agree with Lider. James really did think Sirius was the best man for the job. The team didn't have much difficulty deciding on the third year Frank Longbottom for chaser either. The problem was the seeker. Every time it had been Lily who had seen the snitch, the team had noticed this too, but she could never catch it. Aiolos, on the other hand, had always been first to get to the snitch, but he'd never been the first to spot it. Harold looked desperate again. He pleaded with the team to help him find a solution. James looked around; no one seemed to have any ideas. So he spoke up again, less nervously this time, as his last suggestion had been taken seriously.  
  
"I think you should give the seeker's position to Aiolos and make Lily a reserve. In the meantime we can train her to be a better flyer. If that works then she can be seeker next year, and then if Aiolos has any accidents we might still stand a chance at winning." Harold looked very impressed. James couldn't see what there was to be impressed about; to him it seemed the only natural solution. "That's a very good idea James, and since it was your idea, I think we should give you the job of training her." James was stunned, maybe Harold thought he was doing him a favour pairing them up, but James wasn't so sure. He didn't know her. But then, no one on the team knew her, and he was her own age. So he agreed, trying to ignore the nerves that built up into his stomach whenever he thought about it. 


	7. Flying Lessons

Chapter 6 - Flying Lessons  
  
Fortunately for James, Harold had agreed to be the one to tell Lily about the plan. James didn't have a clue how he'd have broached the subject. In his opinion, he'd already made enough of a fool of himself. Surprisingly, Lily had agreed. James had thought that Lily might have been resentful that someone from her own class would be teaching her, but to his surprise, he was wrong. Lily seemed perfectly happy with the idea. They scheduled their first lesson for the next day, Sunday afternoon and booked the pitch. The sooner they got on with it the better. James secretly believed that the team didn't stand a chance with Aiolos as seeker. He was fast, but unobservant.  
  
So, at the appointed time of one o'clock on Sunday, straight after lunch, James left for the Quidditch field, broom over his shoulder. He was feeling nervous; he wasn't the most patient person he knew, that was Remus. But he wasn't Sirius either, and that thought gave him a little more confidence in his teaching abilities. He was so lost in his worried thoughts that he suddenly realised he'd arrived at the Quidditch pitch. He waved at Lily, who was stood waiting for him. She looked every bit as nervous as he felt. That thought was a comfort for some reason. He walked over to her and started examining her broom. It was an early model Comet, not bad, and in good condition, but if she made the team she'd probably need a new one. James decided not to tell her just yet, he wanted to see how she did on the Comet first.  
  
She was too hesitant; James could see it as he watched her flying around. It was probably because she was muggle born; she didn't trust her broom. She controlled it fairly well, she did everything correctly, but she couldn't let go. She always flew straight, rarely dived and he was willing to bet she'd never flown upside down. There was only one thing for it; James would have to show her what a broom could do.  
  
"Do you trust me?" He asked her when she landed (rather clumsily). It was important she trust him, before she'd trust a broomstick. "What?" She looked puzzled. "Do you trust me?" He asked again, smiling. She looked into his eyes. He held her gaze for just a second before he looked away. He hated that look; it was as though all his innermost secrets had been laid bare to her. "Yes." She answered, without hesitation. James was surprised at this. He looked at her, she was grinning. "Put your broom over there, and use mine." She did as she was told, but she came back to find James already sitting on his broom. "Sit behind me." He ordered, though not harshly. She looked at him searchingly for a second and then obeyed. She held on to his waist. James marvelled inwardly at how comfortable it felt, he'd never taken anyone else on his broom before. He did a few loops, and a corkscrew. Those were just a few simple tricks that he'd been able to do for ages, but Lily didn't seem to like them. She was screaming, loudly, James thought he was about to go deaf, and her grip on his waist was so tight he felt he was going to suffocate so he straightened up and flew in a straight line for a bit, he felt her relax.  
  
"I thought you trusted me?" He asked, playfully. "I do, but I have a bit of a problem with being upside down. I never liked roller coasters very much." James didn't know what she was talking about, but she seemed to interpret his silence correctly and added, "It's a muggle thing." "Well, Lily, if you want to be a seeker you'll need to be able to do this stuff." "You know," she said, sounding very thoughtful all of a sudden, "I know about a hundred girls who'd love to be in my position right now." "What, training for a place on the Quidditch team, because I know about a hundred boys who'd like that too." James was confused, what did she mean? "No, I mean sat behind you with my arms round your waist." James blushed, this was news to him. "Don't be daft." He replied, knowing it sounded stupid, but not really knowing what else to say. How girls reacted to him wasn't something he contemplated often. He was okay looking, he thought, if you liked scrawny with messy hair and dark eyes. "What about you?" He couldn't believe he'd asked her that. He wished he could take it back almost immediately. Fortunately, she didn't seem to think he was serious and replied jokingly, "Nah, I prefer blondes." She laughed, he laughed too, and did a loop the loop. She screamed. He decided it was time for a dive. He rose as high as he dared; he felt Lily's arms tighten on his waist. Then he pointed the broom down and plummeted, as fast as he could, straight down. Lily wasn't screaming, she was obviously past that point in her terror. He pulled up just in time, and he was just about to tell Lily to imagine a screaming crowd as she lifted the snitch in victory when she slapped him round the back of his head. It hurt, a lot, and for a second the broom wobbled as James lost concentration. Lily grabbed at his waist again as he set them down gently on the grass. He turned to look at her, and to his astonishment, she slapped him again. All the colour had fallen out of her face, including her lips, and she was fuming. He saw that dangerous glint in her eyes; the one he'd seen when she looked at Snape before she hit him with the tickling charm. James was scared, but ventured to ask what that was for. Unfortunately, before he even opened his mouth she screamed at him,  
  
"Don't you dare do that to me again!" And she stormed off, collecting her broomstick as she went. James followed her, broom on his shoulder, back to the castle; it was starting to get dark. He was massaging his cheek where she'd slapped him, wondering what he'd done to deserve that, and why on earth she was so afraid of flying.  
  
When he got back to Gryffindor tower he found Lily sitting by the fire. The flames were reflected in her green eyes. It looked quite spooky. He was glad to see that the angry spark had left them, but he was startled to see the sadness that had replaced it. He moved over to her cautiously. He still wasn't sure if he wanted to risk another slap. "I'm sorry?" He said. He didn't mean it to sound like a question, but it came out like that. She didn't say anything; she just stared into the dancing flames. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, but if you want to be on the team." His voice tapered away. He hoped he sounded as sincere as he felt, and he hoped he hadn't been the cause of the sadness he saw in her face, just as fervently as he'd hope he'd never cause that dangerous glint in her eye.  
  
She smiled weakly up at him, and he grinned back. Now he knew she was ok, and she knew he was sincere. He hoped she knew he'd never do anything to hurt her, because that was the truth. He hoped she knew she could trust him. 


	8. Bad News

Chapter 7 - Bad News  
  
The flying lessons that came afterwards were much easier. Although he had never been so busy, what with team practises three times a week and lessons with Lily twice a week, he was really enjoying himself. He'd fitted very comfortably in with the team, Lily was learning quickly and he was still getting good marks in all his classes. On top of that, he began to realise that Lily had been right; he was indeed attracting a fair amount of female attention. He wasn't sure how he felt about this. He knew he should feel flattered, but he couldn't help being a bit annoyed. He didn't like the way Sirius sniggered every time a girl smiled at him, and even Remus and Peter teased him mercilessly.  
  
But apart from the teasing, James was having more fun than he'd ever had in his life before. He loved being busy, he thrived on it, and his only regret was that he no longer had enough time to teach Snape as many 'lessons' as he wanted. Unfortunately, this happiness was not designed to last.  
  
About a fortnight before the Christmas holidays, Cara's tiny owl, (Ariel) arrived at breakfast with a letter. James opened it eagerly; it had been a while since he'd heard from Cara. But it wasn't from her.  
  
Dear James  
We're very glad you will be home for Christmas, but we have some bad news. We wanted to wait until you got home to tell you, but then we realised that you'd want to know straight away. Your Nana and Granddad are dead. They were killed by a Dark Wizard. We don't know exactly which wizard yet; the Ministry is at a loss. It' hard to take in, son, we know. What we do know is that there was a large symbol hovering above their house, a dark skull and a snake. The truth can be difficult, and as Professor Dumbledore once told your father, it can be a beautiful and terrible thing. Go and see him, he knows and he can help you. All our love Mum and Dad.  
  
James felt as though the bottom had just dropped out of his stomach. Why on earth would some evil dark wizard go and murder his grandparents? They'd never hurt anyone. He felt the blood drain from his face; on it's way to be used by his heart, which was suddenly pumping furiously fast. He realised that a tear was threatening to escape his eye. Remus had noticed and he was looking over at him, he looked startled and concerned. He started to ask James what was wrong, but James didn't really want to talk about it. He thrust the letter into his hand and fled from the hall, he couldn't face his friends, not yet. He ran to Gryffindor tower, so blinded by tears that it was a miracle he got there at all. His feet were working by themselves as they carried him to the portrait hole and he heard himself mumble the password to the fat lady before collapsing into a big chair in the common room and allowing the tears to escape.  
  
The Potters had always been a close family. James' Nana and Grandad were his fathers parents, and James had spent a lot of time with them growing up. He sat for a long time thinking about them, remembering the dinners his Nana had cooked and the mischievous smile his Grandad wore, the one that was identical to his own dad's. Sirius hadn't followed him, and James was grateful. Both he and Remus seemed to realise that James really needed to be alone. He was so deep in thought that he didn't notice the portrait door swing open, or hear the girls voice right away. She was speaking softly, gently, inquiringly,  
  
"James, what's the matter? What's happened?" It was Lily. She sat next to him and took his chin in her hands. James was too tired from crying and felt numb with shock, and he allowed her to lift his face and look into his eyes. She studied him intently for a minute or two, she seemed to be looking for something, but James was past caring about what, and it didn't even occur to him that she had seen him crying. After about two minutes she seemed to find what she had been looking for, and a spark of realisation appeared in her green eyes that was almost immediately transformed into a look of deep sympathy. She put her arms around him and pulled him closer to her in a comforting hug. It seemed natural to James to allow her to stroke his tangled hair, and to cry into her shoulders. He was sobbing harder now, without restraint. The full realisation of what had happened had hit him. He couldn't understand it. Why did it have to be them? They were pure blood wizards, from a long line of witches and wizards. They had kept themselves to themselves and had owned a small pub before they retired. They hadn't been Aurors, or worked for the ministry and they had no enemies. What possible motivation could anyone have had for killing them. The question spun around and around in his head as he cried, making him dizzy, torturing him. Even after ten minutes he was still crying, and Lily was still holding him, still stroking his hair, making soothing sounds. James felt very grateful to her at that moment. As his sobs subsided, he felt a wave of tiredness. It didn't matter that it was only ten in the morning he was exhausted. He felt his eyelids shutting and the last thing he remembered was Lily's soothing voice in his ear before he drifted into a deep sleep, the kind that are only made possible by emotional exhaustion.  
  
A/N Before people start asking me why I have named Cara's owl after the little mermaid I should make it clear that Ariel is a character from the Shakespeare play, The Tempest and she was a spirit of the air apparently. Cara would not have know The Little Mermaid. Please don't take this to mean I'm insulting your intelligence, but I couldn't stand having to explain this to anyone so I put it here. 


	9. Couldn't sleep

Chapter 8 - Couldn't Sleep  
  
James was woken suddenly by a loud noise. He wondered for a moment where he was and why he felt so miserable and empty. The feeling didn't last long, however, the events of earlier that day soon washed over him like a cold wave of icy water. He shivered and looked around at the source of the noise. All the students had returned to the common room.  
  
He wondered vaguely what time it was and how long he'd been asleep, until a voice answered his unasked questions. "It's after dinner and you've slept all day. Here, I brought you a sandwich, you'll be hungry." James looked up to see who the owner of the voice was, and he was surprised to see that it was Lily, though he didn't know why. She was standing there with a sympathetic look on her face and a sandwich in her hand. He took it gratefully, although he wasn't sure that the empty feeling inside him could be relieved by food. She looked at him and left, as though she knew that he really wanted to be alone now. James got a pang as he realised he still needed to reply to his parents letter. With shaking hands he reached into his bag and found a quill and a piece of parchment and started to write,  
  
Dear Mum and Dad,  
Thank you for letting me know, you were right to think I'd want to know straight away. The news has been a great shock to me and I hope all of you are well, especially Cara, I know this must be hard for her. I haven't as yet seen Dumbledore, but my friends have been great. I'll see you at Christmas for the funeral. All my love (and ruffle Cara's hair for me),' James  
  
James read it over and decided he was satisfied. He would have liked to say something about the misery and emptiness he felt inside, but he couldn't fond the words. He was sure he family would understand and settled for a short letter that let them know he'd received theirs; he'd send it with Selene later. He sat back in the chair by the fire and ate his sandwich thoughtfully. Now the shock of his grandparents death had worn off a bit, another thought invaded his mind. Had Lily known? He'd felt sure that morning that Lily knew all about it, but how could she. She didn't know his friends very well, and he didn't tell her. She couldn't have read the letter because Remus had it. It was too soon for it to be in the paper.. At that thought his heart stopped. A dark wizard had killed them, their deaths were likely to be in Daily Prophet the next day and then the whole school would know. This thought thoroughly depressed James, he couldn't stand the thought of the whole school looking at him with pitying eyes and he brushed past his friends and went to the dormitory. He wasn't tired at all, but he decided to just go and lie on his bed for a bit.  
  
He lay there for ages, feeling sorry for himself, unable to sleep because he'd slept all day. He stared at the red canopy of his four-poster bed for hours, listening to the snores of his roommates but in the end he decided to get up and go for a walk. He got his invisibility cloak out and tucked it under his arm, he wasn't sure if he'd need it or not. He crept down the stairs, not wanting to wake up his friends and found himself in the common room again. The light from the crackling fire was comforting, and he briefly thought about sitting there again. He moved towards the couch, but he'd only gone a few steps when he noticed that he wasn't alone. A dark figure was silhouetted against the red of the fire, and even in the dark he could make out the red of her hair. She turned to look at him, and James blushed, embarrassed for some strange reason. Her eyes sparkled in the darkness, almost as though they had a light of their own. Almost like he was obeying some silent orders, he moved towards the couch and sat next to her, staring into the leaping flames of the fire.  
  
"You couldn't sleep either?" It wasn't a question, "You know why I couldn't sleep. Why are you here?" "I was thinking." She replied simply. "About what?" Her answer had peaked James' curiosity and he was grateful to have something else to think about. "Well, you." James was startled by this, why should Lily be losing sleep over him and his grandparents. She didn't even know them; she shouldn't even know they were dead. She barely knew him. "I was wondering how I'd feel if I lost some of my family like that, it's a horrible thought. I can't even begin to imagine how you must feel." James didn't know how to react to that, so he nodded and gave Lily a weak smile. She returned it, and then sat back in her chair and closed her eyes. James sat and looked at her for a moment, thinking about just how grateful he was to her and wondering if she realised. Then it occurred to him that she probably did, she seemed to know everything else. Then he went back to bed, his cloak still tucked under his arm, forgotten.  
  
The next morning James woke up early, he hadn't really been tired anyway, and went down to the common room before breakfast. He noticed that Lily was still there, fast asleep, her red hair made a striking contrast to the dark couch. He wanted to wake her before Sirius got there, he wouldn't do a nice job of it, but she looked so peaceful. Last night she had looked troubled, and she looked so much happier there, relaxed, a slight smile playing about her lips. He gathered all his will power together and sat next to her. He shook her a little bit and spoke softly into her ear, "Lily, Lily, wake up. You don't want anyone else to find you here, do you?" She stirred, and James stood up and shook a bit harder, taking her shoulders into his hands. Eventually her eyelids fluttered open and her green eyes were revealed, a confused look in them at the moment. She was obviously trying to figure out why a boy was waking her and then why she was in the common room and not her dorm. "Didn't think you'd want to be found down here, especially not by Sirius." "Mmm? You're probably right. Sirius wouldn't have been as gentle as you, would he?" She giggled and stretched sleepily. James laughed too, the sound seemed alien to him, but strangely good, it made him forget, just for a second about how bad he felt, but when the giggles stopped, the pain returned. 


	10. The Funeral

Chapter 9 - The Funeral  
  
Christmas arrived much to early for James' liking, he hated that his favourite time of the year had been ruined by some evil maniac. So it was with a heavy heart that he got onto the Hogwarts Express with Remus on the first day of the holidays. The others had decided to stay for Christmas, but Remus always had to go home when he could, his mother liked to keep an eye on him. James didn't blame her, if he had a child that was a werewolf, he'd keep an eye on him too. Remus was a very intelligent boy, and self- sufficient and he didn't really need protecting, but mothers will be mothers.  
  
They sat together in an otherwise empty compartment, neither of them speaking very much. James wasn't really in the mood for conversation, but he also hated the silence, it was somehow deafening, so he broke it, "I've always hated funerals, they're so depressing." He would have liked to come up with a better topic, but his mind was a little one tracked at that time. He hadn't actually been to may funerals, and never to one for anyone he really cared about, but even at the couple for distant family members he didn't know he always came away depressed. "I think you're right James." That was all Remus had to say. That was something James really liked about Remus, he didn't speak unnecessarily, and he didn't seem to feel the need to fill a silence with needless chitchat. They travelled the rest of the way in silence.  
  
His parents and Cara were at the train station to meet him. They smiled and waved him towards them, but their eyes betrayed them, they were dull and lifeless. James was reminded forcibly of the old muggle saying he'd once heard, 'the eyes are the window to the soul'. James was shocked at the huge change that had occurred in his family since the summer. They seemed gaunt and tired, his mother didn't fuss about the state of his hair and his father had lost the mischievous grin he always wore. They had both lost a lot of weight. But it was the change in Cara that distressed James the most. She seemed to have given up styling her hair, and her usually slight frame looked even smaller, like she'd shrunk, she looked like she'd fade away any second. When she ran into his arms he found she was lighter too, this couldn't be healthy.  
  
Her personality hadn't changed much, she was still sweet, caring, generous and completely unselfish. He ruffled her hair and kissed her forehead like he always did, earning a small, weak smile. He returned it. He couldn't stand seeing her like this, she was only nine, and she shouldn't have to handle this sort of sadness. It would almost have been easier if she had dissolved into tears, but she hadn't. She was strong; her selfless nature prevented her from being weak. James hugged her hard, wishing there was something he could do to take away her pain.  
  
The funeral was just the next day, his Nana's birthday. It hurt him to think about it. James family had all gathered in his grandparents' favourite park, under their favourite tree. They had met there, and it somehow seemed the best way to remember them. The service was beautiful, nothing at all like he'd remembered of the others he'd went to. James family did not believe in God, but they did believe that death wasn't necessarily the end, more the beginning of something new. Friends of his grandparents stood and told the group all about their memories of them as a young couple, glowing with the first realisation of true love. His father spoke about his memories of them, the meals, and the practical jokes. He heard the breath catch in his father's throat and James didn't think he'd be able to finish, but he did. James had been asked to speak, So legs wobbling and tears threatening to escape his eyes he stood and looked around a the group,  
  
"I don't know if there are words to describe how much my Nana and Grandad meant to me. I can't find them. I love them very much, as I'm sure all of you do. I can almost see them now, laughing at us and the solemnity of this service. I'm sure Grandad would have considered turning someone's hair blue to lighten the mood. I'm sure that wherever they are, they're happy, they're together, and for them I'm sure they consider death to be merely the beginning of the next great adventure." He looked round at the gathering, feeling infinitely calmer than he had since he got the news about his grandparents. Professor Dumbledore caught his eye and nodded approvingly. James hadn't even realised he'd been invited, but it seemed only reasonable, as he had been a very great friend of his grandparents'. He sat down to a smattering of applause and even a few chuckles. Anyone who truly knew his grandparents would know that they wouldn't have wanted them to be solemn.  
  
Cara stood and motioned to her dad who waved his want and muttered something James couldn't quite hear. All of a sudden, he could hear music. He glanced around for the source, but it couldn't be seen, it seemed to be coming from the trees, from the cold winter wind, from the sun, from all around. It was possibly the most beautiful sound he'd ever heard. He allowed it to wash over him, not really paying attention to the words Cara was singing, preferring to simply listen to her sweet voice and the wonderful music. The icy wind bit and froze; December had never been the best time to be outside for very long. James watched as Cara finished her song 'I'll keep a part of you', every note came from the depths of her heart and rang out, clear as a bell into the crisp, cold morning. He was amazed at how her voice continued to be so clear, when tears streamed down her face and threatened to freeze into small salty icicles. He hadn't been listening to the words, but afterwards there were a few lines that stuck in his memory, almost as though they were imprinted on his heart.  
  
'As long as I live I'll keep a part of you inside my heart, then you'll never die and we'll never be apart.' That was the perfect sentiment, it was the perfect song.  
  
Cara came and sat next to James after she finished singing and snuggled into his waiting arms. He held her tightly as huge sobs racked her frail little body; this was the first time she'd let herself go since the news. She needed to do it.  
  
"Let it all out," he whispered to her, stroking her hair, "I'm here for you, let it out." He was so intent on comforting his sobbing little sister that he didn't notice his own eyes welling up, or the tears that rolled down his cheeks, mingling with Cara's. 


	11. Research

Chapter 10 - Research  
  
After the funeral, James felt surprisingly calm; it was almost as though a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He still missed his Nana and Grandad, but he no longer felt misery wash over him when he thought of them. He now knew that wherever they were they were together and happy. They loved each other more than life itself, just as his father and mother felt for each other. It was real love, and it was a consolation to know they hadn't been separated, even in death.  
  
As usual, castle life was the very best distraction for sadness. James soon found he had no time for brooding as he threw himself back into his life. Quidditch wasn't going too well, and the second match of the season was approaching. They had been thrashed in the last one by Hufflepuff. It'd been embarrassing, James and the other chasers had scored several goals, and Gryffindor were up one hundred and sixty to twenty, but then the Hufflepuff Seeker had seen the snitch and chased after it. Aiolos hadn't seen it, and he'd also failed to notice the Hufflepuff seeker dive until it was too late. He had given chase, but Hufflepuff won. James was really glad that his lessons with Lily were going so well. She was a fast learner, and she wasn't as afraid any more. He'd also insisted she got a new broom and she got a new model comet, it was much better. She'd make a much better seeker than Aiolos.  
  
Lily had been very good to James after he had cried on her shoulder. She didn't tell anyone, and she didn't once remind him of it. They carried on as before, as tutor and pupil, and they became very good friends. She was quieter than Sirius and Remus, but braver than Peter. She appreciated the 'Marauders' jokes, and James had even let her in on the little nickname they had for themselves. He'd wanted to tell her it was them, but he hadn't needed to, Lily had know it was them all along. One evening in the common room, he and Lily were discussing all the horrible things they had done to Snape in the past when Remus, Peter and Sirius had all gone to bed.  
  
"I especially liked the time last year when Remus made a horned slug shoot up Snape's nose." She said, giggling at the thought. James couldn't help laughing too, but he stopped suddenly when he realised what she had said, how on earth had she known were they that obvious? Did everyone know? Did Snape? Did the teachers? Lily seemed to realise what he was thinking about and said, "Don't worry, no one else knows." "Then how do you know?" This question had been gnawing away at James for the past year and a half, and it felt good to finally ask it. "I just do." James was very confused by her answer, but although it sounded completely implausible, he accepted it, though it still puzzled him.  
  
But aside from Quidditch, lessons and practical jokes, James had another thing on his mind, and it was very serious. He'd realised that they had completely neglected their promise to Remus to figure out how to become Animagi, and they had started plotting in earnest about how they were going to get hold of the necessary information. The simplest answer seemed to be James sneaking into the library under his invisibility cloak and having a look at the restricted section, it had to be in there somewhere.  
  
So it was decided, and the next night, James snuck out of the tower under his invisibility cloak. He crept along the familiar corridors, trying hard not to make a sound, just because he was invisible didn't mean other people couldn't hear him. On tiptoe, he snuck into the library and under the cord that separated the restricted section from the rest. He glanced over at the librarian, who had fallen asleep at her desk, book in hand. James decided it was safe, especially since the snores she was emitting sounded suspiciously like Peter's, and Peter couldn't be awoken by a foghorn next to his ear when he was snoring like that.  
  
The restricted section was out of bounds to all students below year 6 without a signed note from a teacher. The books there contained information about illegal dark magic, many were written in sinister looking languages and letters that James didn't recognise. The parchment was yellowed and in some cases, stained with a dark red substance that James thought looked suspiciously like blood. James cringed at the thought and tried to put it out of his mind as he read along the spines of the books, desperately searching for something that could help him, an advanced Transfiguration book, a book on transformations, the best would be a book with the title 'How to become an illegal Animagus, in three easy steps', but that would be far too simple. Finally, he spotted a book with the word 'transformation' in the title. He picked it up, and carefully rearranged the other books so it didn't look like anyone had done anything, then he inspected the front cover. The letters were in faded gold on red leather, but the title was not legible. Everything he did, he did apprehensively and quietly, terrified something was going to happen to get him into trouble, an alarm or a trap of some kind. He breathed a sigh of relief when the book came easily off the shelf. He opened the book, and jumped out of his skin when it let out a blood-curdling, ear piercing shriek. James looked quickly over at Madame Pince, whose eyes had shot open, and were now searching the library wildly. He quickly shut the book, but the screaming didn't stop. He shoved the book under his arm and made a run for it.  
  
He tried hard to concentrate on the corridors he was running down, to remember which steps he had to jump, and where certain staircases led on a Monday night and if the door on the right was real, or just a wall pretending, but it didn't seem to be working. James took the wrong staircase, and then got his foot stuck in the bottom step. That was new, he hadn't ever had a problem with it before, but then, he reasoned, he didn't think he'd been there before. He yanked at his foot, hard, but it was stuck tight, the book had fallen on the floor in front of him with a thud, and there were footsteps approaching. James took a sharp breath in and threw his body forward to make sure the invisibility cloak covered the book, as he saw Professor Mechante pass him and approach the door that was straight in front of them. "Snake", she hissed, sounding a lot like a snake herself, and the door swung open. Before she went in, she looked over in James direction and gave a little smirk. James knew she couldn't see him, but she knew he was there, she must have heard him, and she had just given him the password to the Slytherin common room. This was too good, and as soon as he managed to disentangle himself from the step, he was going to tell Sirius, Remus and Peter, because this was the opportunity they'd been waiting forever for. He marvelled inwardly at the enigma that was Professor Mechante, why did she do that?  
  
It took James a while to escape from the step and find his way back to Gryffindor Tower, and he found an anxious group of friends waiting for him. Remus was very pale (well, paler than usual) and Peter looked as though he were about to faint. Even Sirius looked worried. James had been so caught up in the excitement of the opportunity Professor Mechante had just given him that he had completely forgotten that his friends were waiting for him, and would probably have heard the screaming from the library.  
  
"Where have you been?" "What happened?" "What took you so long?" They all fired their questions at exactly the same time, so James didn't know which one to answer first, so he decided not to answer any of them. "You'll never guess what I just found out." He then launched into a full explanation of how he found out about the Slytherin common room, and when he had finished, his friends were all staring at him, open-mouthed, even Sirius didn't seem to have anything to say. "Let's go to bed, shall we? We can look at the book tomorrow, and we can decide what to do with our new information." He was very tired after running around the castle late at night, so after he had carefully folded up the book in his invisibility cloak and tucked it under his bed, he slouched back onto the bed, ignoring all the questions his friends were firing at him, and promptly fell asleep. 


	12. One Step Closer

Chapter 11 - One step closer  
  
The book was an object of great interest to James and his friends and as soon as they awoke the next morning they were to be found crowded around James' bed as they eagerly scanned the index page. They found only one reference to 'Animagus' though, and when they turned to it they found only the following;  
  
'Human to animal transfigurations are notoriously difficult to perform, and anyone wishing to become an animal often, or for long periods of time should consider the Animagus transformation, details of which can be found in 'Advanced Human Transfiguration' as I do not have time to go into detail about it here.'  
  
The disappointment on the faces of three of the boys was a clear as the relief on Peters face. They had spent the night hoping and praying that this book would supply them with the answers they needed, and now that it turned out to be a dead end James was obviously disappointed and frustrated. But there was nothing they could do except to wrap the book back up in the invisibility cloak and go down to breakfast.  
  
After the initial shock and disappointment of the book failing to provide them with anything useful, the Marauders (as they had taken to calling themselves after Professor Mechante had given them that nickname) started to think up ways of using the password to the Slytherin dungeons, and after a few days the three of them had thought of a few little tricks to get the attention of Snape and the other Slytherins.  
  
The three of them were creeping along under the invisibility cloak; the apprehension in the air was palpable. For all three of these boys, the desire to get into the Slytherin common room had long been a dream. Sirius in particular, now that he had gotten over the disappointment of the book, was grinning like an over-enthusiastic Cheshire cat at the thought of the havoc he was about to wreak. Only Remus looked hesitant, but then, he was always the most cautious of all of them, and for the Marauders, that was a valuable quality. Someone needed to have some sense, otherwise they'd spend even more time than they actually did in detention.  
  
As they reached closer to the spot where professor Mechante had spotted James the other night Sirius and Remus turned to James to ask whether he was sure that this wasn't a trap. James couldn't be sure, he certainly didn't think it was a trap, but then there was very little that the Potions professor could do to surprise him. All he could do was reassure them that if anything happened, or something went wrong that no one could see them under the cloak anyway.  
  
When they finally reached the bottom of the stairs that James had got stuck in James started to study the walls, looking for a hint, a clue, something like the Portrait of the Fat Lady to say the password to. He scoured the wall, Sirius and Remus were doing the same, but they couldn't find anything that looked even remotely useful. They were just about to give up and go back to the common room when Remus spotted something out of the corner of his eye.  
  
"Look, this might be it!"  
  
It did indeed seem likely. On the top right hand corner of a wooden panel they found a small carving of a snake. James looked at it, concentrated all his attention onto it and hissed,  
  
"Snake". He wasn't entirely sure why he felt the need to hiss the word, maybe it was because that was how Professor Mechante had done it, but James got the feeling that it was something more than that, something instinctive. It just felt right. They all stepped back as the door swung open towards them to reveal a circular common room, not unlike their own, only this one was decorated in green and silver, the Slytherin colours. As this common room was down in the dungeon, there was very little light, and torches in brackets around the wall provided what little light there was. There was no natural light and the effect of this was quite eerie and for a moment James hesitated about going in, but a shove from behind by Sirius, who was positively shivering with anticipation shook him out of it. They had a plan to execute after all. Sirius was working diligently already, checking all the entrances and exits of the room for stragglers and Remus was following him, locking them with a clever little charm he'd read about in a book. They knew that the only way they stood a chance of feeling safe was if the Slytherins were all safely locked in their dormitories.  
  
The first thing he did after that was start hiding things. James had tried to talk Sirius out of that, warning that it was a juvenile and downright stupid thing to do. James was sure that this wasn't a trick that the Marauders would be proud of and seemed like a complete waste of a fantastic opportunity, but he hadn't counted on the extraordinary ingenuity that Sirius could show in the name of practical jokes! Sirius had indeed hidden everything he could find, using all kinds of different spells. Things were levitated onto cupboards, banished into the backs of drawers, manually stuffed down the backs of chairs and even some small objects were made invisible with the aid of a little invisibility spell that Sirius refused to share. It only worked on very small object though, such as a small moneybag, or a quill. Homework disappeared from view, cloaks were thrown up and out of the way and the furniture was banished against the wall, upside down and piled on top of each other, and very soon the room looked practically empty.  
  
It was during this process that James spotted it, a book that Sirius was quite happily levitating onto the top of a bookshelf, but he caught it before it made and it to the top and when he saw the title his eyes lit up. 'Advanced Transfiguration' It was the book they needed, the book with the answers to the Animagi question. James had to think fast. He couldn't take the book out of the common room, as that would be too suspicious. He flicked through the book and scanned the index. He had no clue how long the instructions for the transformation would be. He was in luck though, the Animagi transformation took up only one chapter, and after quickly scanning it he ascertained that he would be able to copy down enough to get them started in the time it would take Remus and Sirius to finish what they were doing, if he worked fast. So he did. He grabbed a piece of parchment and a quill from their hiding place and overturning a desk and chair he took a seat and set to work. Fortunately he didn't have to fend off any questions for Sirius and Remus who were busy changing the decorations from green to red and didn't notice him right away. James scribbled away as fast as his hand would let, and at the end of three quarters of an hour he had a piece of parchment covered in untidy, but legible scrawl which contained the secret of how to become an Animagus. 


	13. What Now?

Chapter 12 - What now?  
  
The next day at breakfast Sirius was basking in the glow of victory. The Slytherins had entered the great hall glowering, and the rest of the day was equally fun. Slytherins had lost their homework, were wearing too big, or too small cloaks that were obviously borrowed and everywhere the murmured question "can I borrow a quill" could be heard. The beauty of this trick was that no one could possibly suspect the Marauders, as they had no way of knowing the password to the Slytherin dungeons, so the Slytherins were all looking suspiciously at each other, as each believed that none but a Slytherin could have been to blame. Sirius was revelling in his success, he seemed to have conveniently forgotten that at least a share of the glory should have gone to James and Remus who had found the room in the first place, came up with most of the ideas and helped carry them out, but to Sirius it made no difference, and James and Remus decided to simply let him have his time in the sun.  
  
Potions was especially fun, as James knew that Professor Mechante was in on their little joke, and though at the beginning of the lesson he was afraid that she would give them away, she soon dispelled that fear with a glance in his direction, a glance that contained a glimmer of a mischievous smile, mainly in the eyes, the look he thought he had seen before, but this time it was unmistakable, and it made him wonder, why did she give him the password for the common room? Was it just for them to play a practical joke? And was it chance that the very book he happened to be looking for was just there where he could easily find it. Did she know? James doubted it, no one knew that the Marauders were trying to become Animagi, though all the teachers knew about Remus, and Mechante had seen that book on transformation when James had fallen. Perhaps she had put two and two together. If she had, then that could be a problem but on the other hand she had provided them with that book and the answer to their problems. She was an enigma; there was no doubt about that.  
  
James hadn't had chance to tell the others about what he had found out, they were surrounded by people all day, and it wasn't until after dinner that they found time to be alone, and as soon as they were all together in their circular dormitory James started to recount the story of how he'd found the book and copied down the relevant pages. Predictably, the three other boys reacted differently, Remus looked relieved but at the same time apprehensive, Sirius was overjoyed, but Peter looked downright terrified. Up until this point, James reasoned, Peter hadn't thought that this scheme had a chance of working, but now here it was, plain as day in black and white, how to become an Animagus!  
  
When he had been copying it out James hadn't had chance to fully appreciate the difficulty of this spell, he had been too wrapped up in the actual words to concentrate on the meaning. Now, though, the full impact of the difficulty of the task in hand hit him like a brick in the stomach. This was the most difficult spell he had ever seen, the wand work was complicated, the words difficult and it would take concentration the likes of which he had never experienced. He watched all the faces fall as each person around him reached the particular part of the page where it detailed how powerfully magical one would need to be in order to perform the spell. They had known that it was never going to be easy, but this was even more difficult than even Peter had predicted. Remus took a deep breath before saying;  
  
"You know, you don't have to do this, not for me. It's a difficult and dangerous spell, and I don't want any of you putting yourself in danger. Not for me."  
  
"Don't be such an idiot Remus," Sirius snapped, "of course we're still going to do it, it'll just take longer than we expected, that's all." Sirius was ever the hopeful optimist, but in this case James had to agree with him.  
  
"Yeah, don't worry about us, we can take care of ourselves." Remus gave them both a grateful smile and all eyes turned expectantly to Peter. James could tell that there was a battle going on between the two strongest elements of his own nature, his cowardice and the desire to please his friends.  
  
"You know Peter," James said softly, "you don't have to do it just because we are if you'd rather not."  
  
"No, no," he replied, resolutely "I want to. I want to help Remus, and I don't want to miss out on any of the fun anyway." He looked determined, if a bit pale, and James felt prouder of him at that moment than he ever had.  
  
"So, that's decided then," Sirius piped up "how do go about choosing what we want to be then? I've always fancied being an elephant!" Remus looked a bit startled but James laughed, he knew Sirius was joking.  
  
"Don't be an idiot Sirius, an elephant would be impossible to hide, even in the forbidden forest, and anyway, you don't get to choose what you turn into. It says so right here," James said, pointing to a point on the parchment "the animal type chooses you. It's a reflection on your personality or something like that." Sirius looked abashed, and Remus looked relieved. Goodness only knows what Sirius would have changed himself into if he had the choice.  
  
A/N Sorry that was such a short one, I'll make it up to you later. 


	14. Lily's Big Match

Chapter 13 - Lily's big match  
  
Lily's flying lessons with James were going really well. Lily was no longer scared to sit on a broom and do tricks with James, but the hardest bit was to come. She now had to do them herself, and she was terrified.  
  
"It's different with you," she said at one lesson "you know what you're doing so I know now that I won't fall off, but when I have to be in charge of a broom then I'm likely to cause myself an accident."  
  
"OK, so how about I get on with you, then if I see that you're likely to fall I can take over and make sure you don't." Lily was quite pleased with that suggestion, it seemed to her like the perfect solution. In this way she learned to control the broom and gradually lost the fear that she had until, by the end of the lesson she had the courage enough to attempt a solo flight. James flew with her on his own broom, keeping close enough to her to give her confidence but space enough to give her the chance to fly properly, to do a few tricks, to get used to the wonderfully exhilarating feeling of flying. James was sure that if Lily just got over her fear of it then she would love it just as he did, just as he thought everybody should.  
  
In fact, it wasn't long before Lily was ready to take up her place as seeker. It was about time too, in James' opinion, as they were starting to lose any hope they had of winning the Quidditch cup that year. Unless they somehow managed to pull off a win against Slytherin in the next match they would be out of the running, and that would make it the first year in about fifteen that Gryffindor had failed to make it into the final. James certainly didn't want that to happen, not in his first year on the team.  
  
The day of the match against Slytherin dawned bright and clear, fairly good Quidditch conditions. James was exhausted, he'd barely slept a wink with nerves and the thought of breakfast was already making him feel sick. He got up and dressed quietly, hoping that none of the others were awake. He didn't feel like talking, he wasn't sure his mouth still worked. Fortunately there was a soft snoring coming from all the beds in his dormitory and so he safely slipped downstairs and sank gratefully into a soft armchair.  
  
"Nerves got to you too?" James started at the sound of the voice. He looked up to see Lily looking back at him. She looked awful, pale with bags under her eyes. She clearly hadn't slept either.  
  
"Yep, hardly slept a wink." They left each other alone after that. Neither of them had the energy to speak, and so they just sat, each understanding what the other needed, silence and companionship.  
  
James didn't go to breakfast and neither did Lily. They couldn't see the point. Neither of them felt they could eat anything. Instead, when the common room had emptied they walked slowly down towards the Quidditch field and the changing rooms to get ready for their match.  
  
The atmosphere in the changing room was tense, each player was preparing for the upcoming match in their own way. Sirius was being overly jovial, telling every joke he knew and then laughing heartily on his own in a forced kind of way. Lider was pacing the room; James could see him mentally running over plays in his mind. In fact, the only person around not making a sound or moving a muscle was Lily. James couldn't blame her, after all, this was a very big day for her, she was understandably very nervous, and dealing with it in her own way. He wanted to do something for her, to make her feel better, but he had no idea what he could possibly do. He went over to her and sat down next to her with his hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him and smiled weakly and he joined her in silence and stillness. He found it oddly comforting, alone with his thoughts. It was actually a very good way to focus; his mind went blank and then filled with Quidditch until it was all he could think of, and when Lider said,  
  
"Right, let's go!" James was ready to go.  
  
Even if James hadn't been prepared before he went out the first moment of flight, the take off, the rush of cold air on his face would have been enough to chase away all his fears. It always had been the only way to really wake him up.  
  
The game was fast paced and furious, James lost count of how many times the Quaffle was in and out of his hands. Slytherin were leading by a hair, but Gryffindor were keeping the pressure on and there was never more than twenty points between them. James knew that there was no way the chasers could win this match alone, Lily needed to catch the Snitch, and she needed to do it soon. He only hoped that her confidence would be sufficient to catch it before the other seeker. The pressure was mounting, Slytherin pulled ahead by thirty points, then Gryffindor pulled back, and then ahead, and soon, thanks to a spectacular goal from James and a Slytherin broken nose from the bludger courtesy of Sirius the Gryffindor team had a fifty point lead, and it didn't look as though they were about to lose it any time soon. It was definitely time for Lily to pull something out of the hat, to prove to everyone that James had been right and that all of his teaching had not been in vain. A two hundred point victory would put the lid on what had been a remarkable match for the Gryffindors! Then suddenly James got his wish and Lily was diving, diving like she'd never dared dive before. Since that time when Lily had slapped him he hadn't dared to try and get her to perform another dive, those green, flashing angry eyes had terrified him, but this dive was almost as steep as the one he had performed with her that first lesson, and he was very worried about her, what if she wasn't able to pull up in time and ended up ploughed. If she got hurt it would be completely his fault. He shook himself out of his reverie, realising that he had completely stopped playing, fortunately everyone else was too busy watching what was now both seekers streaking down the middle of the pitch heading towards a tiny glimmer of gold low to the ground near the Ravenclaw spectators stand. Finally, after what seemed like an age he saw Lily pull up from a point only inches away from the ground, her fingers closed in a fist, and that fist raised in the air in victory. A huge cheer erupted from three of the stands, everyone wanted Slytherin to lose, and this victory meant that for the first time in about ten years the Slytherin team would not be in the final. As the team descended, the noise was deafening, everyone was shouting and cheering. James wanted to speak to Lily, to congratulate her, but he didn't stand a chance, he had been one of the last players down from the air, and Lily was surrounded by the other members of Gryffindor house, not to mention a fair few Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws too. James was so pleased, not just for himself and the team, but for her, he knew how happy she'd be that all her hard work had paid off, and, of course, James couldn't resist a feeling of pride in the knowledge that this was at least partly his doing. It wasn't until later in the evening, after the initial jubilance of the victory party had died down and the crowd around Lily had somewhat diminished that he could get in to say anything to her. He didn't know what to say though. They were friends, but their friendship had never been a public one, or even an acknowledged one, and James suddenly didn't know how to act in front of all those people. Fortunately Lily saved him from his dilemma and ran up to him and flung her arms around him, "Thank you so much! I could never have done that without you. It was the best feeling ever and it was all thanks to you!" She said all this in a voice so happy and with eyes so sparkly that James couldn't help but smiled, despite the fact that he was incredibly embarrassed. He caught sight of Sirius, Remus and Peter smirking at him in the corner and started to glow bright red. He pulled away and murmured something about it not being a problem and shrank back to his friends, who by this time were sniggering behind their hands. James glowed an even brighter red and escaped up the stairs to the dormitories, his face hot and his ears ringing with the sounds of his friends' laughter. 


	15. The Animagus Transformation

Chapter 14 - The Animagus Transformation  
  
The Marauders had never seen such a difficult spell in all their lives. James had no idea how on earth they were supposed to manage it, but they'd decided that there was no point in delaying it; they could tell that it was already going to take years as it was. That night they agreed to wait until everyone else was in bed and to perform the first enchantment that night at midnight.  
  
No one had seen Sirius and James as quiet as they were that night. They were studying the piece of parchment with the spell on, slavishly figuring out how to pronounce all the complicated Latin words, and swishing and flicking as if their lives depended on it. There were diagrams that James had hurriedly copied down with arrows demonstrating the way the wand was supposed to move. It required wrist movements the like of which James would never have imagined possible. It would also take a powerful burst of magic behind it that James wasn't sure he had.  
  
They didn't have very long to work on the spell, and it was lucky for them that it wasn't completely beyond the realms of possibility for James at least. Sirius was also feeling confident (though he often was) but Peter seemed terrified. James had tried to talk to him about him, to let him know that he didn't have to do it if he didn't want to, but Peter had insisted on not being left out. He hated being left out of anything. It meant a lot of hard work for James, teaching him how to do everything two or three times. Remus took over every now and again; he was more patient than James and gave him a much-needed break at intervals. In the end, though, Peter got the hang of it, and the three of them were ready to start the process. They sat up in the dormitory, hardly speaking, waiting in tense anticipation of midnight, a quiet tower and solitude.  
  
When the minute hand finally ticked towards twelve, James stood up, pale and wiping his sweating palms on his robe. Looking around, he knew that the others were feeling the same way. For a start Sirius hadn't said anything for a while, and a silent Sirius was often a sign that something wasn't quite right. Peter was actually shaking, and Remus was paler than James had ever seen him (and Remus was often pale and sickly looking) and he was staring out of the window at the moon. James cleared his throat, as the strongest student in the year he had taken it upon himself to organise the whole affair. The others looked at him, determination was written on every line of their faces.  
  
"I'll go first shall I?" He said, struggling to keep his voice steady. The others nodded, looking relieved that someone had volunteered. He moved into the middle of the room, knowing that he needed some space in case something went wrong, also, he didn't know how big an animal he might turn into. He flicked his wand up, and then down and around in a circle, making complicated patterns with his wrist while muttering the words to the spell under his breath over and over again;  
  
"Magia Mutare persona ad bestia fera." For a few moments nothing happened, but he kept going, knowing he had to keep going until something started to happen. It took a few minutes before something started to happen. James started to feel a strange sensation in his head; as though something was trying to fight it's way through the very top of his skull. It was a very weird sensation. At the same time he was starting to get a prickling feeling all over his body. Weird! The feeling lasted for about five minutes, and the others were watching him, round-eyed and in awe. When the feeling finally wore off he looked around him,  
  
"Well, did it work?" "Yep, you looked like you were growing hairs all over your body and the top of your head started to move as though there was something fighting to get out. It was really odd.  
  
Emboldened by the fact that James was still in one piece Sirius picked up his wand and decided to give it a try. He also has some success, though he said that the weirdest thing was that his backside had felt odd, and that his teeth were becoming pointier and longer. He emerged from the spell grinning, though looking puzzled.  
  
Peter also reported a strange feeling in his backside, but he also said that he felt pressure from all sides as though something was pushing him inwards, forcing him to be smaller. He didn't emerge grinning, he was still shaking, though he looked as though he was feeling relieved that the feeling was over.  
  
James was satisfied; all in all, with the way their first attempt had gone. He knew that there was no way that they were going to get it straight away, it was going to take years to perfect the spell and get the hang of the magic necessary to give themselves the ability to change into an animal at will. They all knew that they would need more practise and magical ability, something that only time would be able to supply.  
  
When they got up the next morning all the boys were looking a lot more cheerful than they had in a while. James and Sirius were feeling very clever, they had figured out how to do a very complicated (and highly illegal) spell. Peter was just looking happy that he'd been allowed to join in with something exciting, and Remus, of course, was just satisfied that there was a chance that he might have company during his transformations in the future.  
  
The first person James saw in the common room was the one person that could bring him down from his high point, Lily, her green eyes were boring into him, making him feel like all his secrets were being laid bare. He really wished she wouldn't do that.  
  
A/N Sorry, once again a little on the short side. 


	16. Rhubarb

Chapter 15 - Rhubarb  
  
Fortunately James didn't have much time to dwell on thoughts of what Lily might or might not know, as the rest of the term flew past in a haze of Quidditch matches, end of term exams and choices for subjects for the next year (he had decided on Muggle Studies and Care of Magical Creatures), and before they knew it, it was the final week of term and everyone was in full summer mode.  
  
As the end of term approached James was feeling as thought things had been a little too quiet recently. They had a reputation to uphold after all, and they hadn't done anything fun to anyone in a long, long time. He could see that Sirius was looking a little restless, and so he got all the boys together and they started to plan an end of term joke that would hopefully make the hovering from last year look like child's play. It took a bit or research, but eventually they found a potion that would make the drinker laugh hysterically and uncontrollably. That sounded like fun, especially if they could make Snape laugh, they hadn't heard his cackle since Lily put that charm on him. It was amusing in itself. Initially it was going to be the whole school, but they decided that since they had got the whole school last time, that it would be funnier to just get Snape, and then the rest of the school would laugh hysterically of their own accord! The problem was that some of the potions ingredients were very obscure, and could probably only be found in Professor Mechante's private store, and some might not even be in there. Never mind, she would be fine, as long as they took care not to be caught.  
  
They made a decision to do it the very next day, as there was very little time left until the end of term feast, and they would need time to concoct the potion and to get it into the appropriate goblet at the feast. There was a lot to be done.  
  
The next day in potions they put their plan into action. It started when Peter 'accidentally' took the potion off the boil too early, ensuring that the potion (which was supposed to make the drinker into a fabulous dancer) would go wrong, and then, for the next stage they let the cauldron fall onto the floor. As a diversion it was excellent, as there was now instances across the classroom of people bursting into uncontrollable tap dancing all over the classroom as the potion on the floor snaked it's way around the room and touched the feet of various members of the class. As an especially amusing touch, Snape was seen doing a rather proficient soft shoe shuffle over in the Slytherin part of the room, and although his feel were looking polished and professional his arms were flailing around like windmills and knocking over various bottles of potions ingredients adding to the general chaos of the room. Even his friends were trying not to seem too amused. James had to tear his eyes away in order to nip into the professor's office. Fortunately for him the ingredients he was looking for were easily found, except one, (rhubarb) and a quick scan of the contents of the contents of the cupboard showed James that there was clearly no sign of it, and so he got back in time to catch the rest of the show. The class was in total confusion, spontaneous tap dances had broken out all over the classroom, Peter was looking quite honestly distressed (it had taken James and Remus a long time to convince him to play along, Peter often made mistakes in Potions class and that made him the obvious choice). Sirius could hardly contain his delight; he looked as though he was about to burst with silent laughter and even Remus, usually the most calm and collected, looked as though he was struggling to stay calm and collected.  
  
Later that day, when alone in the circular dorm room, all four boys sat gathered together around a cauldron, but they couldn't start the potion. Upon reading the instructions again they found that they still needed the one ingredient that James had not been able to find in Professor Mechante's cupboard. The rhubarb.  
  
"So," said Sirius, "does anyone know what rhubarb is?" Everyone shook their heads, none of them had ever heard of it.  
  
"Erm, is it a rare magical plant?" asked Peter, and once again everyone shook their heads, they hadn't the slightest idea. How could they really?  
  
The boys spent the entire day in the library the next (it was Saturday) but they couldn't find it anywhere, not in 'one thousand and one magical herbs and fungi', not in 'magical plants of the Mediterranean' nor in any of the other dozens of herbology books they looked in for the answer. This particular plant just did not seem to exist! After a while they gave up, James thinking that it might not be worth all this work, and perhaps they should have a go at coming up with something else. They got back to the common room and sat down, feeling deflated, it was such a good idea. It was such a shame they wouldn't be able to do it after all. James sat there for a while staring at the fire, thinking, long after the common room had entered and wondering how to fix their problem and searching for a brainwave that would make it possible to still create a trick worthy of their reputation. It was hard work.  
  
He carried on thinking, and he was so deep in thought that he didn't notice someone else joining him in the lonely common room. It wasn't until he looked up that he saw a shock of red hair and a small body curled up on a chair reading a book, Lily Evans. He shook his head, realising how late it was, and he stopped thinking about his trick and started wondering why she was out of bed so late. She looked up, and he found himself staring into her sparkling emerald eyes and feeling uneasy, as he always did when he caught her glance. He blushed, and looked away, he hadn't realised that he'd been staring at her.  
  
"What are you reading?" he asked, trying to cover the awkward silence. He wasn't sure that it had worked properly, because she looked at him a little suspiciously.  
  
"Little Women" she said, blushing. "It's a muggle book, I've read it loads of times, I like to reread old favourites when I can't sleep."  
  
"I've never heard of it. Is it, erm, any good?" He asked, not sure whether that was the right kind of question to be asking, perhaps he was supposed to know about these things.  
  
"Yes, it's wonderful," Lily replied, prompting a wave of relief to wash over him.  
  
"Do you, erm, miss anything about home? You know, muggle things?" She looked at him oddly, but not as though she thought him mad or anything, (although James wouldn't have been surprised if she did think that) but more as though she was thinking hard about her answer. "I'm going to do Muggles Studies next year" he added, by way of an explanation.  
  
"Well, I do miss my mother's cooking," she said, "Hogwarts food is very good, but the kitchen staff just don't ever seem to make crumbles."  
  
"Crumbles? What are they then?" As often happened when food was mentioned, James' interest was piqued.  
  
"Well, a crumble is dessert made with stewed fruit, like apples, blackberries or rhubarb with a crumbly topping which is made from flour and butter and su.." She stopped there because James had got a funny look in his eye. Rhubarb! So that was why they hadn't found it in any magic books, it was a fruit, a fruit that was popular with muggles. No wonder, it all made sense.  
  
"James, are you, erm, alright?" He was suddenly aware that Lily was looking at him as though she were concerned for the state of his sanity.  
  
"Oh, sorry. I'm fine, really. Just starting to feel a little sleepy, I should probably think about going up to bed now." He felt guilty; she probably thought he wasn't interested in anything she had to say.  
  
"Oh, ok." It might have been his imagination, but he was sure she looked a little upset. He had to do something about it.  
  
"Erm, I'll have to try some of that crumble sometime. I'm always up for trying new things." Ok, so it wasn't the most inspired thing in the world, but it seemed to work. She brightened slightly.  
  
"I'll bear that in mind," she said, "goodnight" "Goodnight Lily," James said, and almost ran up the stairs to his dormitory. He had to tell Sirius and Remus, and he had to do it now! 


	17. The Search Continues

Chapter 16 - The Search Continues  
  
"What? Really? No, in a Potion, muggle!" Sirius seemed to be having a few difficulties coming to terms with the muggle nature of this missing potion ingredient. Remus, on the other hand had more sense,  
  
"Well, do you have any idea where we could get some?" James didn't know, where could you get muggle fruit in Hogwarts during term time? James doubted that even if they could get to Hogsmeade somehow there wouldn't be a place where they could buy such a thing.  
  
"There's always the kitchens," James said slowly "the house elves may keep things like that to cook with. I'm sure they could be relied on to provide something like that if they have any."  
  
That settled it. They had to go down to the kitchens and see what they could do about this. They were pushing it for time, so James decided that the best option would be to go then and there.  
  
It didn't take him long, and under his invisibility cloak he was pretty much able to avoid running into Pringle, the caretaker, or his grouchy assistant Filch, or Peeves for that matter. Because he was on his own there wasn't the usual problem with there being too many people under the invisibility cloak and he was able to move much more quietly than usual. It didn't take him long to get to the portrait of the bowl of fruit and tickle the pear (his dad had told him long ago how to get into the Hogwarts kitchens) and go and see if the house elves could help him.  
  
"Master James, hello. We is not seeing you for ages sir? Can we get you anything?" Even as he stepped into the portrait hole he was confronted with loads of little elves swarming around him at waist height offering him everything from Tea to cream cakes. He took a cup of tea from one of the elves and sat down.  
  
"Actually, I was wondering if you could do me a very big favour." James flashed them the biggest and most charming smile he could muster. "We will do all that we can, sir." Came the resounding reply. "Excellent, because I was wondering if you had such a thing as rhubarb down here." "Rhubarb sir? Why is you wanting rhubarb? We is not using it often sir, unfortunately we is not having any at the moment." James tried not to feel deflated at this. "sir, we is getting it from the forest, sir. Hagrid is sometimes getting us some when we needs it master James." This news had the effect of cheering up James considerably, though the thought of mooching around the forbidden forest at night for something he didn't know anything about didn't really appeal, but this was such a good opportunity to amuse the entire school, and at the same time to humiliate old Snivellous. How could he possibly pass it up?  
  
After some hurried goodbyes and thank yous he climbed out of the portrait and made his way back to Gryffindor tower. It was now ridiculously late and James was finding it difficult to keep his eyes open. Tomorrow he would solve the rhubarb problem he thought, as he fell onto his bed, still fully clothed, not even bothering to take off his glasses.  
  
The next morning he told the others what he had found out, and all of them (with the possible exception of Peter) looked upset that they hadn't found any of the last ingredient devastating, but when James told them that they had to go into the forest only Sirius looked excited, Peter looked terrified and Remus looked reluctant.  
  
"So, looks like it's just you and me mate!" James said, sounding an awful lot braver than he felt. "Looks like it is." Sirius looked fairly pale now as the reality of what he was agreeing to sank in. James couldn't help but sympathise, there were rumoured to be all sorts or terrifying things in the forest, snarling beasts, magical creatures who like to keep themselves to themselves and were ready to fight to protect their privacy and all sorts of other things that James didn't even want to think about.  
  
"So, have either of you geniuses got any idea of what you're looking for in the dark forest? I presume neither of you have ever seen rhubarb." Remus made a good point. As always he was the sole voice of reason. But maybe there was a way. He was deep in a train of thought that seemed to be taking him down the hall of Hogwarts towards a room, it could be the library he thought, and just as he was about to reach a conclusion he was interrupted by a throat clearing cough from Remus who was looking amusedly at him. It seemed that he had got there a few steps ahead of James.  
  
"I think, James, that you will need to check in the Muggle Studies part of the library, where I'm sure you will no doubt find a description or a picture of this particular item." Feeling slightly irritated that Remus had pre-empted the precise thing that he was going to suggest doing he nodded curtly and stood up.  
  
"Come on people, it's time for Potions. We'd better get going."  
  
Today, as was often the case in Potions lessons, Professor Mechante made James feel uncomfortable. He had no idea how much she knew, or how much she was likely to repeat to anyone else. It was disconcerting to have to rely so heavily upon the silence of a woman who showed no signs of honesty or loyalty at all. What would happen if she ceased to find their antics funny? It was this thought that troubled James more than any other.  
  
At lunchtime James and Sirius polished off a large plate of food in record time and ran down to the library in order to get as much time as they could in the library. Anyone who had seen them would have laughed at the unusual sight of James Potter and Sirius Black rushing to get to the library of all places. Especially at lunchtime when they should have been in the Great Hall causing as much trouble as they possibly could. They dashed in and made a beeline straight for the Muggle Studies, hissing a hurried apology to Madame Pince the librarian for disrupting the silence of the library. They quickly pulled a large selection of books from the shelf and sat down at a desk to read them. They knew that they only had a few days left to pull off a trick that they could be proud of and it was becoming a matter of urgency that they find the last potion ingredient.  
  
It was a good half hour before they managed to find what they were looking for. After a few dead ends (Add stewed rhubarb, he grew rhubarb in his garden etc) James hit upon a picture of some rhubarb in what seemed to be a children's cookery book as it was full of pictures of the ingredients and instructions such as 'ask a grown up if they will do this part for you' etc. It looked decidedly weird; it was a long stick shape with huge leaves growing out of the top. According to the blurb in the book next to the picture it was a root plant, and so he deduced that he would have to look close to the ground for it. Still, at least they knew what they'd be looking for.  
  
Feeling a good deal more cheerful they made their way back along the corridors on their way to History of Magic. James brought the book with him, inside was a recipe for crumble that he thought might be useful. The way Lily had described it had made it sound delicious. It might be worth a go.  
  
Everything was going fine; they had made arrangements to slip out of the tower that night during History of Magic and they were on their way to Transfiguration when disaster struck in the form of one Severus Snape.  
  
"Ah, Potter and Black, I can see by your faces that you're plotting something nasty as usual, it would not be good for you to get caught, I am sure that Black's parents would not like him to get into any more trouble, especially since he is already considered to be somewhat of a, how shall I say this, disappointment to them." It happened before James was able to register what Snape had said, a flash of green light whooshed through his line of sight but he gathered from the expression on Sirius' face that Snape had caught a sore point. Sirius was glowering and Snape, James noticed this with a start, was on the floor making horrible, painful sounding retching noises and out of his mouth were coming what looked like fat, black juicy slugs! It was disgusting; all the people in the corridor had either backed away in horror or had crowded around to see what was happening. Some thought it was funny, and others, like Peter looked as they too were going to start retching at any moment.  
  
James wasn't sure what he was supposed to do in this situation, was there any point in trying to get Sirius away from the scene of the crime, was there any chance that they might get away with this? James seriously doubted it, they were right outside McGonnagall's office. What was Sirius thinking? James was sure he had more sense that that. Almost as if she was able to read his thoughts the person he least wanted to see appeared as if out of nowhere.  
  
"Black, Potter I demand to know what has happened here!" McGonnagall had stormed into the corridor and was now glaring angrily at the two boys. James felt a little annoyed at how quickly she had jumped to the conclusion that they had been involved. For once, he hadn't been involved.  
  
"Well," James began, trying to think of something to say that might minimise the punishment that Sirius might have to undergo, but before he had thought of something, before he even had chance to stall for more time Sirius had jumped in.  
  
"I cursed him professor, he provoked me and I lost my temper. This had nothing to do with James this is between me and Snape." McGonnagall looked surprised at this outburst and didn't know what to say for a moment.  
  
"Very well, in that case I shall take twenty points from Gryffindor. No matter what he said you still should have controlled your temper, you cannot go cursing everyone who insults you and you shall have a detention tonight. See me after the lesson. Snape, you need to go to the hospital wing, there's nothing for it but to throw them all up I'm afraid but the nurse may be able to give you something to speed the process up a bit. Right, everyone, into the classroom, we haven't got all day." James spent the rest of the lesson cursing Sirius and his temper, because of it he was now going to have to go into the forest on his own that night, and he was not looking forward to it. He also spent a while wondering why what Snape had said had affected him like that, Sirius didn't usually let Snivellous Snape get to him. Maybe there was something about his family that Sirius wasn't letting on. 


	18. Into the Forest

Chapter 17 - Into the Forest  
  
James was trying his best not to shake uncontrollably with fear as he made his was silently out of his dormitory and down the steps to the common room. He was lecturing himself furiously inside his head, telling himself not to be a chicken, that it would be fine, that he had his wand if anything went wrong, that he was well able to defend himself. These thoughts did calm him slightly, although they didn't seem to stop the shivering. The school was dark, silent and cold at this time of night. The only sounds James could make out were his own quiet, rhythmic footfalls on the stone floor and the distant echo of a shriek of delight, originating no doubt, from the trouble loving poltergeist Peeves who was probably overturning some furniture at that moment for the pure fun of it. Still, at least that meant that Pringle would be occupied. He tiptoed as quietly as he could towards the entrance hall, throwing himself into a nearby cleaning cupboard as he heard Pringle prowl past him, cursing Peeves. He scolded himself inwardly, he was under the invisibility cloak, Pringle wouldn't have been able to see him anyway. Still silently reprimanding himself he squeezed out of the door, opening it just enough to allow his skinny body through and started making his way across the grounds to the dark outskirts of the forbidden forest. Now that he had almost reached his goal he felt braver. His senses were alert, his eyes had quickly adjusted to the inky blackness where even the light of the distant moon could not penetrate and his ears were listening for any sign of movement. He found what he was looking for in less than half an hour, spotting some particularly large leaves in the shadow of a particularly large tree. He spent a few minutes pulling and digging in order to force a few roots out of the ground. It was difficult and time consuming work without any tools, and James had no idea if there was a spell he could use to do the job for him, but finally he came away with a handful of sticks of reddish green rhubarb which he stowed safely in the pocket of his cloak before setting off towards the castle. But that was when he hit the snag. He couldn't see the castle anymore. And he had no idea how to get back. There was nothing but dark tree trunks and eerie shadows surrounding him, and only a canopy of branches and thick leaves above him. Through small gaps between leaves James could just make out the odd chink of moonlight or the twinkle of a distant star, but to all intents and purposes he was alone, in the dark, and lost. In the distance he heard the howl of a wild animal, and suddenly felt very vulnerable, alone with animals like that with only a stick of wood to protect himself with. He wandered around for what seemed like hours, though in reality it was probably not more than forty-five minutes. He was searching frantically for any evidence of which way he had come, flattened leaves, broken twigs, anything that looked like it had been recently stepped on, but there was absolutely no sign that anyone, or anything had ever walked on that ground. In despair he sat himself down on a large stone to think over his predicament, deciding just to walk for a while in the same direction, he couldn't have come very far and soon he would be able to find the way out, to see light, to catch a glimpse of the massive towers of Hogwarts School. He walked for what seemed like an age, trying to fight the feeling that he was going the wrong way and that his attempt to escape was just taking him deeper and deeper into the forest and into danger. He stopped when he reached a large clearing to get his bearings, but suddenly froze in fear as he heard a loud, persistent clicking sound. It was coming from behind him. Slowly, very slowly he revolved on the spot, turning to face whatever it was that was making that irritating and oddly terrifying sound and found himself staring at three pairs of hairy knees. Looking up slowly his gaze travelled over long hairy legs, a huge round hairy body and a head with what seemed like hundreds of cold, mad eyes and two more legs, these held in front with huge pincers on the end, this was what was making the clicking sound. It was a spider, an unnaturally huge, hairy, vicious looking spider. He knew he should run, he turned and made to go, but he couldn't. His invisibility cloak had snagged itself on a branch and James was stuck. He couldn't leave it behind because then the spider would see him but if he stayed there then the spider might smell him, or hear him, perhaps he could already. He tugged desperately at the cloak, willing it to come loose, but it was stuck fast. He gave a last, hard yank and heard a sickening tearing sound as a huge hole appeared in the bottom of his cloak and the bottom of his legs came into view. There was an excited clicking, but this time there was more than one sound. James looked around and saw that he was suddenly surrounded by what looked like dozens of huge, hairy, monstrous spiders all clicking their pincers menacingly. He had no idea what to do, he racked his brains for a spell, but nothing came to him. What on earth was he going to do now? He thought desperately about trying to reason with them, telling them that he was just a boy, a student from the school and that someone was bound to come looking for him, but he decided that the spiders probably wouldn't have been able to understand him, that all they understood was the smell of fresh meat. But quickly, he was proven wrong. "So, human. Who is it that wanders into out forest so late at night? Is it a man, a woman, a witch or wizard, a student, a teacher or someone else?" James was stunned, too stunned to answer the spider, the speech that he had quickly been preparing when he thought there was no chance that the spider could talk had flown from his head and he could barely open his mouth. "No matter," the spider continued "it shall make a tasty treat, it has been a long time since we have enjoyed human meat." James stared in horror at the monster in front of him. So this was how he was going to die, devoured by giant spiders on the hunt for rhubarb. The thought was so ridiculous that it almost made him laugh. He would have laughed if the situation had not been so dire He reached into his pocket for his wand, determined to at least attempt to defend himself, but all he found was the fruit that he had gone to so much trouble to locate. He looked around wildly, he couldn't lose his wand! He saw it on the floor a little way off. It must have fallen out of his pocket when he was pulling at his invisibility cloak. Weighing his chances he tried to edge his way over to his wand, hoping to be able to grab it before they attacked, trying to keep his movements imperceptible. When it was within reach he quickly stretched out his hand, but as his fingers closed around the cool, hard wood he felt a sharp pain in his legs as something closed tightly around them. Next he found himself moving upwards. His cloak slipped away from his shoulders and he just about managed to grab it before he found himself suspended upside down and a long way from the ground. Once again he was trying desperately to think of a spell, racking his brain until it hurt almost as much as his legs. The blood flow to his head had increased making it difficult to think, making it difficult to stay conscious. He was fighting his hardest to stay awake, and the world was spinning, and that's why he thought he was hallucinating when he saw his broomstick hovering just below him. Shaking his head to clear it the best he could he looked again, and it was still there. Thinking surprisingly quickly he shouted 'Expelliarmus' while pointing his wand at the spider. The spider opened his pincers and as he was hurtling to the floor James managed to grab his broom and swing himself onto it. It was fortunate that he was so good at flying, as he had to dodge numerous pairs of clicking pincers during his upward flight, if he hadn't been so good then he and his broom would have been reduced to a pile of splinters and bone within seconds. When he had reached a safe height he stopped to catch his breath and get his head together he decided to put his cloak back on, the hole was still there, but thankfully there wasn't anything to see while he was on the broom. He looked around, scanning the skies for a clue as to who it was that had come to his rescue. Maybe Sirius had come looking for him after his detention, maybe Remus had had a change of heart, although a glance at the sky put that idea out of his mind, it was a full moon and Remus would be more of a danger than a help to him at the moment. No wonder he had not wanted to come in the first place. Looking around he thought he saw a figure on a broom a way off to his right, he looked intently at it, hoping to see some clue as to who it was but all he could make out was the colour of the hair, and from here it looked like it was a deep, vibrant red. 


	19. The Leaving Feast

Chapter 18 - The Leaving Feast  
  
It was Lily! This revelation threw James' mind into a spin. There were all sorts of questions to be asked. Why had she done it? Ok, that one was easy, of course she would rescue him if he was in trouble. How did she found out? Well, James was used to asking that question of Lily, she seemed to know everything about him. Maybe he'd find out some day. Why had she disappeared? Well, James couldn't answer that one. Maybe she didn't want anyone to know that she'd been out of bed, maybe she thought she'd get in trouble. Well, if she didn't want anyone to know then he wouldn't tell anyone, but he wanted to thank her. He'd tried for a couple of days to talk to her, but she didn't seem to want to talk to him. She was carefully, almost studiously avoiding being alone with him, surrounding herself with friends and sitting as far away from him as she could in classes. He would simply have to find another way. The night before the last day and the leaving feast the boys had stayed up late finishing off their laughter potion and it was finally finished. They were all sleeping soundly, well, all of them that is, except James, who was wide awake and thinking. He had to think of a way to show Lily how grateful he was to her for saving his life. He thought hard, but nothing would come, and son he felt the soothing and relaxing waves of sleep washing over him, but a few moments before sleep pulled him under completely he had an idea. The next day James, Sirius and Remus were all impatient to get to the end of classes so that they could make it down to the kitchens in plenty of time before the feast. Fortunately all the students were feeling, to some degree, the same way, so their restlessness was not noticeable. None of the teachers, not even Professor McGonnagall were able to get any semblance of order, and they all bowed to the inevitable and allowed the students to play games and talk among themselves during classes. Enjoyable though their lessons that day were, James was very relieved to reach the end of the day. The four boys ran up to their dormitory and returned, moments later, hidden under James' magically repaired invisibility cloak. On the way James couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt, perhaps they shouldn't be doing this, perhaps that potion had already caused enough trouble, but James shook the thought away, telling himself that it would be a waste of time and effort not to go ahead with it. Besides, James intended to put what was left of the rhubarb to a very good use. When they reached the kitchen they were greeted by a crowd of house elves, all pressing food and drink onto them. Peter took them up on their offer, as he always did, but James asked them, in a loud voice so they could all hear, if they could do him a favour. Sirius and Remus snuck away to the large table at the far side. James held their attention by showing them the recipe for crumble in the book he got out of the library, giving them what was left of the rhubarb and asking them very nicely if they wouldn't mind, please, making sure that he, and Lily Evans received the finished product for dessert at the feast that night. There was a clamour to get hold of the books, all of the elves were keen to take on the responsibility, obviously thinking that James had a crush on this girl or something.   
  
Sirius gave James the thumbs up and a huge grin from across the kitchen, the plan had worked. Beaming at the house elves he gave he book to Dolly, asking her to make sure it went back to the library when she was finished with it and she beamed back at him, looking ecstatic. All the elves bowed low as they left the kitchen, wishing them a pleasant holiday and begging them to please come and visit them again next term. The four boys left, pockets laden with food that they had not been able to resist talking, despite the feast still to come, expressing thanks and promising the elves that they will indeed come and visit them again next year the first time they get chance.  
  
"I put it in his dessert bowl," Sirius whispered, laughing, "that way everyone will think nothing's going to happen this year, and then, when they least expect it hilarity will ensue." James laughed hard at this, partly at the image of Snape cackling and rolling around on the floor and partly at the elaborate phrasing that Sirius had used.  
  
The feast was excellent, as it always was, but especially fun for James and his friends as Gryffindor had won the house cup and that meant that the Gryffindor table was the loudest of the lot. James tried his best to appear as jovial and carefree as ever, laughing and joking loudly with his friends as there were several suspicious looks coming his way from the teacher's table, though they were less and less frequent, and James couldn't deny that Sirius had been right and that by now no one was expecting anything to happen. That was what was going to make this all the more fun.  
  
Finally, the main courses disappeared from their plates and in their places appeared a selection of delicious looking desserts. In front of James was a bowl of what looked like pink, stringy mush with a powdery, floury topping. Not sure what he had gotten himself in for, but trusting what Lily had told him, he put his spoon in his bowl and took a spoonful. He was pleasantly surprised, the fruit was tart and sweet and the topping was tasty and filling. He looked over at Lily and found himself staring straight into her brilliant green eyes. They were sparkling at the moment and she was smiling at him. He grinned at her and gave her the thumbs up to show that he liked it. She smiled even wider at him before turning back to her friends. He knew she understood what he was trying to say.  
  
He was so busy, in fact, congratulating himself on finding such a successful way of thanking Lily that he almost forgot their big joke. He soon remembered though when he heard a horrible grating sound reminiscent of someone scratching a blackboard quickly. The sound got louder, and higher pitched, and James, like the rest of the school, turned around to look for the source of the din. Snape was giggling, well, the closest Snape could get to giggling anyway, it was more like a cackle. It was awful. Suddenly, from the other end of the table came a loud, horrible, shrieking, wheezing laugh. James looked for the source of that noise and saw a tall, blonde girl, someone who could be pretty, but at the moment her face was contorted as though it hurt her to laugh.  
  
"Who's the girl, Sirius?" he asked. "Oh, that's Narcissa, she's my cousin. I was just wondering what her laugh sounded like. I don't think I've ever heard it before. No wonder, horrible, isn't it?" James had to agree, though he also had to wonder why he didn't know that a member of Sirius' family was in Slytherin. He made a mental note to ask him about it. Narcissa's hysterical, wheezing shrieks of laughter were creating terrible dissonances with Snape's low and insistent cackle. The sound was truly painful.  
  
The whole school was in an uproar, three tables were laughing hysterically and the fourth was complaining loudly to the teachers, who were all trying to end the spell, believing it to be the tickling charm again, but 'finite incantatem' had absolutely no effect. This went on for a good half an hour, until Professor Mechante (with a slight glance at James and Sirius) swept over to the table and administered the antidote that she just happened to have prepared the previous day, something that James thought was very odd. He supposed she must have noticed that all the ingredients for the potion had gone from her cupboard, and it couldn't be hard for her, of all people who knew more about their behaviour than almost anyone else to guess who was responsible, but still, it was disconcerting. It made him feel almost as uncomfortable as the knowing look he received from down the table. Somehow Lily knew, but then, she always knew. 


	20. Home Again

Chapter 19 - Home Again  
  
The atmosphere on the train was cheerful. Everyone was looking forward to a long summer of essay free fun, and James was too of course, but he was finding it difficult to enjoy himself as the memory of Sirius' revelation the previous night. He knew that Sirius was a pure blood wizard but beyond that and his brother's name and age he didn't know anything about his family. James didn't, for one moment think badly of Sirius because his cousin was in Slytherin, but he was worried. If the rest of his family was this kind of wizard then he couldn't imagine what it was like for him at home. He knew that James would find any kind of pure blood mania infuriating. He was fortunate that his parents didn't really care much about bloodlines. James' aunt by marriage on his mother's side was muggle born, and his older cousin was married to a muggle, so for him it was normal to marry muggles. He desperately wanted to ask Sirius about his family, but he was afraid of offending him, he didn't seem to want to talk about it. He'd have to find a way around it.  
  
"Sirius," James said, trying his best to sound casual, "why didn't you tell us you had a cousin at Hogwarts." "I don't have a cousin at Hogwarts." He replied straight away, it sounded something like a reflex. "Oh, you mean Narcissa? I forget about her. Don't like her much. She's marrying a Malfoy next year." All four faces in the compartment contorted into expressions of disgust and loathing. The Malfoy family was old, and rich and exceedingly obnoxious. James sympathised. "Eurgh, sorry mate. That must be rough. What do your parents think?" At this question James could see a flush creeping up Sirius' face. "My parent's, erm, they, well, they approve. They're glad that it's a good pureblood marriage." Towards the end of the statement James could hear Sirius trailing off, and realised he shouldn't push the subject anymore.  
  
The rest of the journey passed fairly uneventfully, and when they got back to platform nine and three quarters James pulled Sirius to one side. "Look, mate, if it gets too much for you at home, you know, with the wedding plans and everything, come and stay with me. Just show up on the doorstep if you like, or just pop out of the fireplace, my parents won't mind, I'm sure." Sirius didn't reply, he just grinned and the pair of them got off the train together and ran off towards their families, shouts of 'goodbye' and 'have a good summer', following them.  
  
James was glad to be at home. He always missed Hogwarts when he wasn't there, but home was always lovely. It was good to be back.  
  
A/N Hi there all. This is it, the last chapter. The next story in the sequence is in production as you read this, so check back soon to read the next instalment of James Potters life. In the next fiction Cara will be joining James at Hogwarts, he may come to see Lily as more than a teammate and James' life will most probably be turned upside down more than once.  
  
Thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed my first two stories and I hope you'll continue to support me through my next one. 


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